Overview

  • Offers leagues that other sites ignore
  • Simple and easy to play
  • Only offers soccer, and only four leagues within that sport
  • Navigation is sticky at times on desktop and mobile

FantasyBet is the brainchild of filmmaker Viktor Enoksen and poker player Eirik Bjorklund, two friends from Nordreisa, Norway. It offers weekly and season-long fantasy soccer games with competitors drafting players from teams in the English Premier League, English Championship, Spain’s La Liga or the Norwegian Tippeligaen.

How FantasyBet Works

Users can either create their own contest or join one that is already established for their desired league. From the available players, they have to build a soccer team worth £/€/$100 million or less that will score them the most points possible for achievements they make during the course of real-life games.

The team’s formation is fairly fluid, although you have to pick a certain amount of players in each position, and you are allowed substitutes who will be drafted in if one of your first team stars is not selected in real life. You will usually also have to pick a captain, who will score double points during that week’s fixtures. However, some contests feature a no-captains rule.

Prizes are awarded for finishing in certain positions in the standings; these fluctuate with the different contests available.

FantasyBet Sports

FantasyBet exclusively focuses on soccer from England, Norway and Spain at the moment. It certainly does not have anywhere near the choice of market-leader DraftKings, but for big fans of European soccer, it does provide chances to draft players from team in the English Championship and Norwegian Tippeligaen, neither of which are well catered-for elsewhere.

FantasyBet Contests

FantasyBet players can choose to take on just one other competitor head-to-head, play Double or Nothing, where the teams that finish in the top half of the standings double their stake, play a Winner Takes All contest where only the team with the most points receives a prize, or opt for the Progressive Payout game, where the prize structure is set depending on how many entries there are. Games can last over the course of a round of matches – a weekend, for instance – or for the entire season, like traditional offline fantasy games.

You can also enter contests where each competitor chooses from the entire list of players in that division, the same limited list of players, or even one where each manager receives a random pool of players from which to pick. In the latter case, you are assured by FantasyBet that their algorithm ensures your list will consist of a good mixture of star players and best-value athletes.

What FantasyBet lacks in choice over the sports you can play, it makes up for in contest options, with each varying style of game offering different challenges to keep users entertained.

Layout/Design

While there is nothing wrong with the look of the FantasyBet site, it certainly isn’t hugely inspiring. A static stadium background is overlaid with the relevant statistics in a pleasing-enough gray, white, turquoise and red color scheme.

The squad-drafting screen has some nice graphics featuring the players’ jerseys arranged in their positions on the pitch, but there are no head shots or anything fancier than that. This simplicity does mean that there is little to distract your eye from the matters at hand, but it doesn’t sell the offerings on the site particularly well.

Navigation is generally smooth, although the FAQs are a complete pain on desktop, with most links having to be pressed twice before they leap into action. There is no smooth transition, with the answer appearing underneath the question as you would expect, the whole page seems to reload before you have to click again to find the information you need.

Features

There is a fun blog offering analysis and tips for player picks, written in a very easy and entertaining style. The writers are obviously huge fantasy sports betting fans and don’t claim to be experts, mainly imparting the wisdom they have gained from bitter experience!

Flash Mode is an intriguing proposition, with players given three minutes from the time they see the pool of players on offer in which to pick their perfect team. If they do not fill all the slots, they are randomly assigned drafts, providing a sense of jeopardy to normally-meticulous managers. It certainly tests how well you work under pressure.

The site’s customer support is worthy of mention, with an answer to an email query sent within just a few minutes. The personal touch of a direct reply and not merely a link to an automated troubleshooting program was hugely appreciated.

Mobile

The mobile site makes some of the text look a little squashed into the middle, especially when listing the weekend’s fixtures. This also means that there is a lot of scrolling to be done, which will annoy some potential players as it makes searching out information while picking teams time-consuming and tiring on the thumb.

Other than that, it looks fine without really standing out, much like the desktop site. The FAQs transition much more smoothly than on desktop, but some of the navigation is a little sticky at times.

FantasyBet Promotions and Bonuses

First depositors at FantasyBet receive a 100 percent matched bonus on amounts between £10 and £100, which must be played through ten times in six months before your winnings can be released as cash.

Conclusion

FantasyBet is certainly no competitor for the might of DraftKings or FanDuel, but it is a neat alternative if you are a soccer fan, with a lot more attention and depth given to the sport than is found at many other fantasy sports betting sites. It is a fairly simple product, with some fun features and an enjoyable blog. Customer support is attentive too, replying to a question within five minutes of the email being sent.

Although it is nothing much to look at and it is not always smooth to travel around on desktop or mobile, there is plenty to enjoy at FantasyBet. In addition, the fact that it is still in its relative infancy does mean there is less competition for prizes than at the big hitters’ sites. This could change over time, so if you can tolerate substandard navigation, now might be the time to get involved with FantasyBet.

Score: 6.5/10

  • Deposit Methods: FantasyBet accepts deposits via Visa and Mastercard, Skrill and PaySafeCard.
  • Withdrawal Methods: Withdrawals can be made to a Skrill account or directly to your bank account.
  • Email: support@fantasybet.com

Registered Address:

For UK Operations:
Viral Interactive Ltd.
2nd Floor, Cobalt House
Triq Notabile
Birkirikara
Malta
BKR 3000

Non-UK Operations:
Viral Technology N.V.
Landhuis Groot Kwartier
Groot Kwartierweg 12.
Curacao

Licensing: The company holds a UK Gambling License as well as one from Curacao for players elsewhere.