Northern Irish Betting Preferences Revealed

The results of a new survey carried out in Northern Ireland suggest that most punters from that part of the world prefer to place their wagers in local bookmaker shops rather than on the internet.

This might seem like a bit of an unexpected outcome to the survey, although when we see that it was commissioned by the biggest bookmaker in Ulster, McLean’s, perhaps this isn’t such a big surprise after all.

McLean’s commissioned Ipsos MORI to carry out the poll and to do this they asked more than 700 residents of Northern Ireland about their betting preferences

Not Just Betting

The first figure to stand out is that 8 out of every 10 people in the region choose an alternative type of gambling other than straight betting. The National Lottery, scratch cards and raffles are some of the alternatives cited as being used to get a bit of gambling fun.

It also appears that the build up to the Euro 2012 Championships has caused an uplift in the amount of football betting carried out. However, according to the survey, the fact that their local bookmaker shops give them an instant cash payout is the reason why the Irish prefer betting this way than on the internet.

The results also showed that the tough gambling regulations in Northern Ireland are, apparently, making life more difficult for the bookies, while the growth in internet wagering is another factor they need to combat.

The Managing Director of McLean’s is called Paul McLean and he said that “the majority of punters” still liked to go into their local betting offices to try their luck.