Best Grand National Betting Sites in Ireland for 2024 – Free Bets and Bonuses

How we rank the best grand national betting sites

The Grand National Festival is one of the most popular times of the year for bookmakers. The sheer excitement generated by the festival means all types of punters will wager on the event. The event encourages betting sites to provide new customer welcome offers and existing customer promotions. These offers entice bettors to wager on the event. 

The sports betting industry is full of competition, which is a great thing for bettors. Why? The more competition available, the more likely betting sites will provide offers and promotions to attract and keep customers. 

Bookmakers will give new customers incentives to sign up like free bets, deposit bonuses, and boosted odds. Once customers sign up for the betting sites, bookmakers will work hard to keep them. Existing customers may receive free bets, boosted odds, money-back betting offers, and much more.

We use a set of criteria to rank the various betting sites on the market. Below you will find some of the criteria we use. Not all top betting sites will meet 100% of the criteria, but they will come close.

New customer bonuses	New customer bonuses are a must for any betting site. A bookmaker should provide a compelling reason for customers to sign up for their services. A new customer bonus is the ideal way to start with a new bookmaker. New customer bonuses come as free bets, deposit bonuses, money-back bonuses, boosted odds, and much more. The competition for customers is high, so shop around for the best new customer welcome bonus. You may want to sign up for multiple sports betting sites. This allows you to enjoy welcome offers from different sites.
Best odds guaranteed (BOG)	Best odds guaranteed ensures you are getting the best price available when betting on horse racing. Not all betting sites will offer BOG to its customers. BOG is simple to use. If you wager on a horse before the start of the race and the price increases once the race begins, you will receive the higher price if the horse wins the race. For example, if you place a bet at 2/1 odds and the horse drifts to 4/1 at the start of the race, you will be given the higher odds if the horse wins.
No-runner, no bet	The no-runner no bet offer means your bet is voided if your selection does not run the race. The stake will be refunded to you.
Faller insurance	Faller insurance will cover your bet in the instance that your selection falls. The bet will be voided and the funds returned to your account.
Markets and odds	The best betting sites will offer multiple markets on the Grand National festival. There should be betting markets for each race, along with additional markets, including top jockey, top trainer, and more. The odds should be competitive for the festival. It is encouraged to have multiple accounts with betting sites. This allows you to bet on the best odds available. Using an odds aggregator website will help you locate the best odds on a horse for the Grand National and the other horse races.
Live streaming	Horse racing bettors are serious about their races. Punters want to watch the action unfold after they place a bet. The best horse racing betting sites offer live streams of the Grand National after you place a wager. Many of the top websites will also offer horse racing live streams on races throughout the year.
Existing customer offers	New customer welcome offers are great, but so are existing customer promotions. A good sports betting site will provide horse racing fans offers for being loyal customers. Loyalty offers include free bets, BOG, odds boosts, and more. Some bookmakers will have exclusive loyalty programs. These reward punters for make a specific number of bets each week, month, or year.
Live betting	Live betting allows horse racing fans to place wagers mid-race. You can watch the action unfold before placing a bet on a horse.

Best Irish Grand national betting sites for 2024

Horse racing is part of the fabric of major sports betting sites. It is one of the oldest sports around and has been wagered on for centuries. Horse racing remains one of the most popular sports to bet on.

Fans can wager on daily races, but the major annual events, like the Grand National, are the most popular for betting. Indeed, the build-up throughout the year on the Grand National begins in the summer and extends to the spring for the Aintree Racecourse event.

Below are four top-rated horse racing betting sites. Each offers customers a fantastic betting experience. Whether you are betting for the first time on the Grand National or the 10th, you will find these bookmakers to be at the top of their game.

Ladbrokes

Whether a new bettor or an experienced punter, Ladbrokes is a brilliant betting site for the Grand National. Ladbrokes has special offers for new customers and existing customers each April for the event. You can sign up and receive a healthy welcome bonus to use on the Grand National race. Ladbrokes provides competitive betting odds to customers, which keeps them at the forefront of the betting industry. The betting site offers an extra six each-way places for the horse race. While some betting sites will offer more, Ladbrokes are still generous with its extra places. The Ladbrokes site is easy to navigate, making it ideal for new customers. The mobile app is just as easy to use and the transition from website to app is seamless.

Pros:

• Thousands of sports betting markets, including horse racing
• Live streaming platform
• Long-standing reputation in betting industry
• VIP programme

Cons:

• Customer support is not 24/7
• €10 minimum deposit for PayPal and Neteller users

Boylesports

Boylesports is one of Ireland’s top bookmakers. It started as a high-street betting shop before going online. Not many sports bookmakers these days started as high-street businesses. More and more bookmakers are popping up online with no history on the high street. Boylesports has a history, and it is a trusted brand amongst bettors. Boylesports has all the features bettors crave. The betting site offers up to six extra places each way on Grand National race bets. Punters can live stream the Grand National, and any other horse race, after placing a wager on it. Boylesports offers exclusive welcome offers for the race, along with existing offers for regular horse racing punters. The odds are competitive and markets are comprehensive for the festival’s races. One of the exclusive promotions offered by Boylesports is its free bet if your horse finishes second to the favourite. It is just one of the many ways Boylesports succeeds with the Grand National.

Pros:

• Easy-to-use website and app
• A variety of banking methods
• A range of promotions for existing customers
• VIP programme
• Bettors can deposit cash into their betting account by visiting a high-street shop

Cons:

• Live streaming is only for horse racing and greyhound racing

Bet365

Bet365 is the premier betting site in the world today. Many of the features synonymous with the betting industry started with Bet365 – or were enhanced by the bookmaker. Bet365’s headquarters are in Stoke-on-Trent, and the company continues to revolutionise the sports betting industry. The Bet365 website is one of the easiest to use. Finding the different sports is quick thanks to them being listed on the left-hand side of the page. The mobile app is also simple to navigate. Once punters locate the horse racing section, they can explore the latest Grand National odds. Bet365 has competitive odds for each race held at the three-day event. New customers will find an assortment of welcome offers across all sports. There are Grand National exclusive offers for new customers and existing bettors. Punters can watch the race via the live streaming platform after placing a wager. Bet365 offers best odds guaranteed on the Grand National, ensuring punters get the highest price possible for their win. The betting site blows the competition out of the water with 10 extra each-way places on the Grand National race.

Pros:

• 10 extra each-way places
• Live streaming platform
• Competitive new customer bonus offers for horse racing
• Easy-to-use website and mobile app

Cons:

• Lacks no faller insurance offer

Coral

Coral is another long-running bookmaker in the UK and Ireland. The bookmaker has a simple-to-use website, making it quick to find the horse racing section. Coral provides new customer welcome bonuses for the Grand National, with plenty of free bets to go around. The betting site offers up to six extra each-way places. The odds are very competitive, and punters can watch the race via the live streaming feature. Horse racing is one of Coral’s bread-and-butter sports, along with football, so it is no surprise the Grand National festival is covered extensively. The racing odds are consistent and better than many of Coral’s competitors. The mobile app works perfectly and is the ideal extension of the Coral desktop version. Coral also provides features like bet builder, cash out, and in-play betting. Once the Grand National ends, punters still have plenty of reasons to use Coral. Its Racing Super Series gives punters the chance to win a share of a €25,000 horse racing jackpot.

Pros:

• Strong, consistent horse racing odds
• A great range of promotions and specials
• Secure website
• Smart Boost enhanced odds
• Racing Super Series

Cons:

• Fees for using Neteller

What is the Grand National

The Grand National is held at Aintree Racecourse on Merseyside every April. Spectators are treated to 21 races, seven per day, during the event. The festival’s marquee race is the Grand National. The race features a £1 million prize purse, with the winning horse earning over £561,000. 

Forty horses contest the Grand National race. It has a massive field of potential winners. Due to the large number of horses entered into the annual race, bookmakers offer extra each-way places, meaning punters can back a horse each way and get a payout if they finish in the top six. Some bookmakers even give as many as 10 places each way. 

No race in the United Kingdom or Ireland is more famous than the Grand National. It brings tradition and modern horse racing to one incredible racecourse on Merseyside. It is the most famous steeplechase in jumps racing and continually delivers excitement each year. 

Why is the Grand National a popular sporting event?

The Grand National is all about tradition. It was first held over 184 years ago and is still going strong. Indeed, it becomes more popular with every event. Its popularity isn’t just from watching the three-day festival. The 21 races across the three days are popular amongst horse racing bettors. The cream of the crop for horse racing bettors is the Grand National race itself. 

Spectators enjoy each day of the festival, but its biggest race takes place on the final day. The Grand National race is the penultimate race of the festival, taking place on Saturday at 5:15 p.m. The race is a stamina-snapping four-mile and two-and-a-half-furlong course. The 40 horses must leap over hedges, fences, and barriers, as they scamper to the finish line. The Grand National is just as much about stamina and agility as it is about speed and power. 

You don’t have to be a horse racing fan or aficionado to bet on the Grand National. The race’s appeal is universal. It is like the Ashes, Super Bowl, or World Cup final. People from all walks of life, with varying degrees of horse racing knowledge, will take a punt, hoping to win big. 

Some pundits believe the Grand National is a lottery due to the combination of distance and jumps. The race isn’t always won by the favourite, or second-favourite for that matter. Sometimes horses with long odds romp their way to the finish line ahead of the pack. 

In 2009, Mon Mome was 100/1 to win the Grand National. Spoiler alert, the French-born horse won the race over more fancied opponents. Whether selecting a horse based on its name, colours, or a hunch, punters will place their bets before the race starts. The Grand National produces an incredible amount of drama, and that is why so many people love it. It is a part of the fabric of UK and Irish sports. 

Previous Grand National Winners

The Grand National has an incredible history in the UK and Irish sports. It was first run in 1839 and was won by the horse, Lottery. The Grand National has been run every year except in times of war or pandemic. It remains one of the hottest tickets on the sporting calendar and over 150,000 people attended the 2023 edition of the event across its three days. Winning the Grand National can make a horse into a legend and the following horses were heroes of recent years. 

Winner	Year
Corach Rambler	2023
Noble Yeats	2022
Minella Times	2021
NO RACE	2020
Tiger Roll	2019
Tiger Roll	2018
One For Arthur	2017
Rule the World	2016
Many Clouds	2015
Pineau de Re	2014

Grand National betting markets

There are multiple betting markets for the Grand National. Learning about the betting markets can help you select a winning bet.

• Win

The win bet is the simplest bet to place on the Grand National race or any horse race. You are simply backing the horse you believe will win. If the horse wins, then your bet wins.

• Each-way

The each-way bet provides some insurance on a win bet. By selecting each way, you are covered if your horse finishes in the each-way places. Most betting sites now payout on extra each-way places. For example, Bet365 will payout up to 10 places. An each-way bet doubles the initial stake. If you wager €10 on a win bet, then the stake will be doubled to €20 if you select each way.

• Place

If your selection finishes in the top three places, then your bet will win. However, like each-way betting, betting sites now offer extra places.

• Forecast

The forecast bet is a selection on the horses you believe will finish first and second in the correct order. For a race like the Grand National with 40 runners, this can be a difficult bet.

• Reverse forecast

The reverse forecast is a bet on the first two horses to finish in any order.

• Tricast

The tricast is a bet on the first three horses to finish in the correct order. Tricast bets are even more difficult to land than forecasts.

Popular grand national betting offers

The Grand National is one of the best times of the year to land a great betting offer from a bookmaker. Sports betting sites will provide a variety of betting promotions to new customers in time for the event. Whether you want to wager on the Grand National race or another event at Aintree, there are plenty of promotions available to increase your bankroll.

Free bets	Free bets are the most popular bonuses available from bookmakers for the Grand National. Many bookmakers will offer free bets to customers once they make an initial deposit and qualifying bet. Free bets are essentially free money. They increase a punter’s bankroll.
Money back on losing bet	Some bookmakers will reimburse punters with a free bet if their first bet loses. This promotion is often advertised throughout the year on horse racing.
Boosted odds	Bookmakers will offer boosted odds (enhanced odds) on races. The boosted odds are often on the favourite for the Grand National. Enhanced odds can be found throughout the year on different races.
Faller insurance	If your horse falls during the Grand National, your bet will be voided and paid back into your account as a free bet.
Extra each-way places	Extra each-way places can include the first 10 horses in the Grand National. Many bookmakers are getting silly about the number of each-way places available. Some will offer a low number of just five, while other bookmakers will cover 10.

Strategies for betting on the Grand National

You shouldn’t just go into the Grand National blind. If you want to select a winner, then you will need a betting strategy. Below are some tips to help you select a winner.

Trainers

It seems that the best trainers continually churn out winning horses. Between 2010 and 2023, 10 different trainers won the Grand National. The time span saw two different trainers repeat as winners. The top trainers produce some of the best horses in the sport. Knowing which trainers are top of the game will help punters pick a strong candidate to win.

Favourites aren’t always favourites

The Grand National’s distance and jumps make it very a very difficult race. The favourite doesn’t always win. Since 1900, only 11 favourites and four joint-favourites have won the Grand National. That isn’t a great stat on favourites winning the race.

Age

The sweet spot for age seems to be around eight and nine years old. Seven of the eight winners between 2015 and 2023 were eight or nine years old. Noble Yeats was the only horse outside the age group to win the race in those years. Noble Yeats was seven when it won the Grand National.

FAQ on grand national betting