Maximum stake of £10, minimum odds of EVS (2.0) and must not exceed 5/1 (6.0), In-play and/or cashed out bets will not qualify for this offer. 18+ . Full T&C apply.
Toals Bookmakers was founded in 1932 and is one of the major independent bookmakers in Northern Ireland. The operator runs 50 betting offices, offers a telephone betting service and has moved online. The betting offices take cash bets over the counter and through betting terminals. Toals offer concessions to new and existing online customers. The operator is heavily involved in partnerships with sports bodies and clubs in Northern Ireland. They also have affiliates with racecourses in Ireland and sponsor races. The climate for independent bookmakers in the UK and Ireland is difficult but Toals continue to trade in shops and online.
Customers new to Toals are entitled to up to £250 in free bets. This amount is split between an initial free bet of £10 and weekly free bets of £5.
The Toals new customer offer is subject to the following Terms and Conditions:
• Open an account and make a deposit.
• Five qualifying bets in the first 7 days.
• £10 free bet credited to an account.
• Minimum stake for the qualifying bets is £5.
• Bets must be placed at odds of Evens (2.0) or bigger.
• Accumulators count but the combined odds must be Evens (2.0) or bigger.
• In subsequent weeks customers must place 10 bets or more each week.
• The minimum stake for these bets is £5.
• For each week in which 10 bets are placed customers will receive £5 in the form of a free bet.
• Cashed out bets or bets placed using earlier free bets do not qualify.
• Any returns from the free bets will not include the free bet stake.
The total amount of free bets is substantial but that is spread over a full year. The staking requirements are restrictive and the odds conditions are also quite restrictive. The free bets for new customers are achievable and the conditions are transparent. However, other operators have less complex welcome offers. These may be for a smaller amount in total but are easier to achieve and only require one transaction. In effect the Toals welcome offer comes in two stages: £10 as a free bet for new customers and £240 in free bets for existing customers. However, to receive the maximum free bet amount customers must bet with Toals for almost a year.
Toals offers new casino players up to £500 in the form of a welcome bonus and a £10 free sportsbook bet after staking £100 on one of the most popular slots. In addition to the welcome offer for new customers to the sportsbook Toals has a number of offers online for existing customers. At the time of writing current customers could benefit from the following sports betting related concessions:
Customers with Toals who live in the UK or Republic of Ireland are entitled to a free bet for up to £25 if one selection in an accumulator of five legs or more does not win. The free bet equates to the stake but the accas must not contain only football teams. It is an all sports acca insurance offer and the bet can contain football teams and teams from other sports. All selections in the accumulator must be at odds of 1/2 (1.5) or bigger. The combined odds must be at least 5/1 (6.0) for the five or more selections. The free bet is available for the next accumulator with five selections or more.
The Terms and Conditions for Football Acca insurance are identical to those that apply to Sports Acca Insurance. However, each selection must be from a football match and the following markets count:
• Match winner 1X2
• Goals Galore
• Goals Galore Plus
• Handicap Betting
• Half Time/Full Time
Odds restrictions as above apply and free bets must be used within 7 days of being credited to an account. Only one free bet is allowed on any sporting event. The maximum free bet is £25 and any returns from a free bet will not include the stake.
Customers are entitled to up to £25 in the form of a free bet if a backed horse finishes second in any virtual race before midday. Only singles count as qualifying bets and the win part of each way bets are valid but the place element is not. Even though the qualifying bets must be placed in the morning the free bet can be used on virtual racing at any time of the day. However, the free bet will expire after 7 days and it can only be used on one virtual race. Any returns that accrue from a free bet will not include the free bet stake. The free bet is the same value as the qualifying bet and the maximum free bet is £25. Bets placed after midday do not count.
Customers that take an early price when betting on a horse and the Starting Price is bigger will have bets settled at the SP. BOG is available from midnight the previous day to the opening show. The most that can be paid out to one customer as a result of getting the bets odds is £2,500. The promise applies to racing in the UK and Ireland. If there is a Rule 4 deduction it will be applied to the best odds. Toals offer the same guarantee for greyhound racing in the UK and Ireland.
The offers for existing customers are common in the industry. Several competitors offer the sports and football acca insurance. Most online operators that target the UK and Ireland marker offer best odds for racing and greyhounds in those countries. However, concessions for current players enhance the new customer bonuses.
Toals has its origins in cash and telephone betting and most of the bets taken in this way are for horse racing. For customers in the UK and Ireland football is now the most popular betting sport but racing is still an important betting product. Toals display their sports on the main menu on the Home Page and an A-Z of all sports which totals about 20. The sports covered are targeted at the UK market and those that are popular in other parts of Europe do not appear. In Ireland GAA hurling and GAA Gaelic football are hugely popular for betting and Toals covers these sports extensively. Each fixture features match result and handicap betting.
The core betting sports in the UK and Ireland are still horse racing, football and greyhounds. Golf, rugby union and snooker attract many bets and turnover but there is more betting activity on the three core sports. Despite the growth of all sports betting the traditional betting sports still generate most bets and biggest stakes. It is these sports that get most media coverage from a betting angle. Here is more detailed information about how Toals covers football, horse and dogs:
Toals displays football events under Featured Matches by league and then a list of other matches in date and time order. The featured fixtures are from the main leagues in England and the FA Cup and the other main domestic leagues in Europe. The chronological fixtures do not appear under the relevant league. However, there is an alphabetical list of countries which makes navigation to a specific match quick and easy. Above this list is a shorter menu of Top Leagues and these are the main domestic leagues in England, Spain, France Italy and Germany. The All Countries list has about 50 options and features leagues from all around the world. International tournaments are displayed under Other Competitions. Toals also offers betting on matches in the Champions League and Europa League and outright odds for the main cups, leagues and international tournaments.
At the time of writing there were no immediate fixtures in the English Premier League due to matches in the FA Cup. This is the biggest domestic Cup in the world and huge for betting in the UK and Ireland and all around the world. Toals displays the match odds for each tie and a link to their related markets which total about 60 and appear under the following headings:
• Top
• Cash Out
• Handicaps
• Goals
• Half
• Goal Time
• Players
• Team
• All
Other online bookmakers offer more football markets but Toals focuses on the most popular and does not cover the more exotic. The three way match market has a profit margin of about 5.5% which is above average. This operator is more suited to the recreational gambler than professionals so the odds margins can afford to be not the most competitive. Toals competes based on reputation and loyalty than the value in their odds. The related markets margins are also slightly above the average.
Horse racing is very popular for betting in Ireland and Toals offers their customers a limited service. Horse racing betting is available on meetings in the UK, Ireland and the United States. Other bookmakers cover more international fixtures but Toals focuses on what their customers bet on which is mainly horses in the UK and Ireland. In addition to betting for the day’s racing the operator also offers odds for future races such as the Grand National and Derby. There is a section for Cheltenham Festival ante post betting but at the time of writing the non-runner/no bet rule did not apply. Customers are offered the latest price for each horse and can back an unnamed Favourite and unnamed 2nd Favourite at the Starting Price. Prices are issued the night before racing and bets are settled in line with the Best Odds Guaranteed promise.
Greyhound racing is the second most popular betting sport in betting offices in Ireland and Toals reflects the popularity of the sport. They offer odds on BAGS (Bookmaker Afternoon Greyhound Service) meetings and Open meetings in the evening. Customers can bet win or each way on the outcome of each race and place Forecast bets. For some minor meetings bets can only be placed at the Starting Price. However, when there are early prices Toals offer their customers Best Odds Guaranteed on greyhound meetings in the UK and Ireland. Ante post betting is also available on the Greyhound Derby which is the most prestigious Open race in the sport.
The Toals sports app requires iOS 9.0 or later and is compatible with iPhone, iPad and iPod touch devices. The app is only available on the App Store and iOS devices. The Toals sports app has been judged one of the best on the market. It offers a comprehensive sports service featuring pre-match and in-play betting. The app is simple and convenient to use and includes all the features that are available on the desktop version. Toals app users are entitled to the welcome offer and ongoing offers that desktop customers can enjoy. The Toals mobile sports app works well.
In addition to the welcome offer, ongoing promotions for existing customers and a full sports betting product Toals offers customers some betting features. Most of these can be found elsewhere but these features help customers with Toals enjoy a better betting experience. Here are some bookmaker elements of the Toals service:
Toals offers in-play events in football, tennis, golf, cricket, snooker and ice hockey and other sports when the event justifies live betting. For each live football match the latest score, time on the clock and match odds are displayed. There is a link to the related in-play markets and that usually totals about 30. Other operators offer more live markets and a better live betting interface. The latest score is displayed but there is a lack of live stats and there is no graphic to show the movement of the ball and the team in possession. Betting is suspended after a key event like a goal or sending off.
Customers on the Toals website can bet on virtual events in football, horse racing, greyhounds and motor racing. There are races every two minutes and several football matches each hour. For each virtual football match customers can bet on the match result, correct score, number of goals and first team to score. Outcomes are determined randomly and starting prices are returned immediately which means bets can be settled quickly and account balances are updated accordingly. Dogs and motor racing events are streamed live every few minutes and customers can bet on the outcomes. The Toals graphics for virtual sports are clear and realistic.
Funds can be deposited and withdrawn using debit cards, e-Wallets such as Skrill and Neteller and bank transfer. Deposits are immediate and there are no fees. Withdrawals take from 2 to 5 days and some companies may charge a fee. In line with money laundering measures there are controls over deposit and withdrawal limits. Funds deposited using one method must be withdrawn using the same method. There are minimum and maximum amounts that can be put in and taken out of an account in one day and through one transaction.
Existing customers login by entering a unique combination of a Username and Password. Potential new customers click the Sign Up button to begin the registration process. The Register screen has fields for personal, contact and account information. There is an option to enter a Coupon Code which activates the welcome offer for customers joining through affiliates. Once the required fields have been populated new customers click the Join Now button and the registration is confirmed.
New customers must select a method and amount to make a deposit. The minimum deposit is £10 and the maximum varies. Once the deposit has been implemented the account balance is updated accordingly and betting can begin. As each selection is added to the Betslip the betting options are displayed and these include singles, combinations and system bets. The bet is selected and once the stake has been entered bettors click the Place bet button. On confirmation the account balance is updated.
Customers have access to betting rules, Terms and Conditions and guidelines for responsible gambling. For existing customers there are a number of options to make contact such as telephone, email form and postal address but there is no Live Chat. Potential new customers who have issues related to creating an account or existing customers who cannot sign in a generic email address is available. Response rimes are satisfactory and the customer support department is open for seven days each week.
Toals is a relatively small Ireland based independent bookmaker. The roots of the company are in cash betting in licensed premises and telephone betting. The operator does not have the marketing resources to compete with the bigger Irish brands such as Paddy Power and Boylesports. Toals competes on reputation and loyalty and the transfer of betting from offline to online by some of their customers. The website design is unsophisticated and not as sleek as the sites of the major UK brands. Toals has been in operation since 1932 so the retail and telephone division are surviving despite the changes in the industry. There is still a place for independent bookmakers who offer decent odds on the most popular betting sports.
In terms of leagues and markets for the major betting sport Toals focuses on the most popular and does not offer more exotic bets. The welcome bonus is potentially lucrative but customers must bet for almost one year to earn the maximum benefit. Promotions for existing customers are standard and the in-play betting interface is basic. The odds on offer are about average so Toals offers solid sports betting service that nothing that stands out as being exceptional. The operator must have a decent customer base because they are surviving in a highly competitive market. Toals provides a safe and secure betting environment with no major flaws.