How to check a bookmaker’s GRAI licence, step by step

Why the licence matters

Since 1 July 2026, the licence that counts for online betting in Ireland is one issued by the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland (GRAI) under the Gambling Regulation Act 2024. GRAI announced on 30 June 2026 that its remote betting and remote betting intermediary licences commenced the next day. The older remote bookmaker’s licences issued by Revenue ran until 30 June 2026 (section 237 of the Act), and Revenue states that it no longer issues them: from 5 February 2026, GRAI is the licensing authority for all forms of betting licence.

The licence is the legal basis for the whole relationship between you and a bookmaker. Section 67(1) of the Act, in force since 5 February 2026, allows betting to be provided only by a licensee and only in line with the licence it holds. A licensee also carries duties set by the Act: it must verify your identity and age before opening an account (section 169 and S.I. 315/2026), it must not let anyone under 18 bet (section 158), it must offer deposit limits (section 164), and it must not give credit or accept credit cards (section 165). GRAI summed up the last point as “a ban on facilitating credit or accepting credit cards”.

These duties apply to every licensee. A bookmaker that offers deposit limits is meeting the law, not doing you a favour, and the operator files in this atlas describe it that way.

The register matters for the sites that point you towards bookmakers too. Under section 75, GRAI can ask the High Court for orders against anyone who provides an unlicensed betting activity or advertises one, including orders that block access through internet providers. That is one reason Rivoatlas lists only companies that appear on the register. Rivoatlas is not a bookmaker and does not hold a gambling licence; this guide shows you how to check the same facts yourself.

A licence tells you who is accountable and under which rules. It tells you nothing about whether a bet will win, and it does not make betting safe. Betting costs money and most bets lose. Set a deposit limit before you start.

What you need before you start

The check takes about five minutes. Have three things open before you begin.

1. The address you actually use. Copy it from the browser’s address bar, not from an advert, a social post or a message. Look-alike addresses are covered later in this guide.
2. The bookmaker’s footer and terms and conditions. Bookmakers put the licence statement at the bottom of each page and in the opening clauses of their terms.
3. The GRAI register at grai.ie/register, in a second tab.

Write down the date of your check. The register changes as GRAI issues new licences, and the page states when it was last updated. When we read it on 3 October 2026, it said “Last updated: September 21st, 2026”. A licence that is not there today may appear after the next update, and the reverse is also possible.

If you are checking a bookmaker before opening an account, do the check before you enter any personal or card details. If you already have an account, the check is still worth doing: the terms you accepted should name the same company that appears on the register.

Step 1: find the company name in the footer and terms

The name on the logo is a brand. The licence belongs to a company, and the company name is what the register lists. Bookmakers that serve Ireland state it in a short licence line, usually in the page footer. When we read the footers of the bookmakers in this atlas from an Irish IP address, the licence lines looked like this:

• BOYLE Sports: “Boylesports (Gibraltar) Limited is additionally licensed and regulated by the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland for the provision of betting products and services to customers in the Republic of Ireland under licence number: GRAI-0852-RB-26-0001” (site footer, read from an Irish IP address on 3 October 2026)
• Paddy Power: “For customers in the Republic of Ireland: PPB Counterparty Services Limited is licensed and regulated by the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland in respect of sports betting (registration number GRAI-1003-RB-26-0001)” (site footer, read from an Irish IP address on 3 October 2026)
• Ladbrokes: “Sportsbook is licensed by the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland with Licence number GRAI-0622-RB-26-0001” (site footer, read from an Irish IP address on 3 October 2026)
• Coral: “Sportsbook is licensed by the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland with Licence number GRAI-0652-RB-26-0001” (site footer, read from an Irish IP address on 4 October 2026)

A complete licence line has four parts: the company (the licensee), the regulator (the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland, or GRAI), the licence number in the GRAI format, and the scope, such as “sports betting” or “Sportsbook”. If one of the four is missing from the footer, look for it in the terms.

Where else to look

• The licence clause of the terms. It is usually in the first few clauses, under a heading such as “About us” or “Licensing”.
• The Irish version of the terms. Some operators publish separate terms for the Republic of Ireland. At Ladbrokes, the footer link “Terms and Conditions” opened the general version when we checked, while the “General Terms and Conditions (Republic of Ireland)” are a separate page, first published on 1 July 2026. Read the version written for Ireland.
• A copy of the licence. Some footers link the number to a PDF of the licence document. It is useful, but the register remains the reference.
• The help centre. Pages on age checks, complaints or account closure often repeat the company name.

Other regulators in the same footer

Footers often name more than one regulator. A typical line says that gaming is licensed in Gibraltar and the sportsbook by GRAI. That split is expected: GRAI licenses betting only. It has not yet opened applications for gaming licences, including online casino games, and has said those applications will open during 2027 and 2028. A GRAI number covers the betting part of a site, not a casino section on the same site. A UK Gambling Commission or Malta Gaming Authority number may also appear; neither replaces a GRAI licence for betting by people in Ireland.

Step 2: search the GRAI register

The register starts at grai.ie/register. From there, “Full register” opens a searchable list with a filter for licence type, and “Download register” gives the whole list as a spreadsheet file (a CSV file inside a ZIP archive). The list is built in the browser, so give the page a moment to load.

1. Search for the company, not the brand. Start with a distinctive word from the company name, such as “Counterparty” or “ElectraWorks”, rather than the full legal name.
2. Try spelling variants if nothing comes up. The register uses the name as filed, which can differ from the footer. On 3 October 2026 it listed “Tonybet OU” for a company that writes its name with Ü, “NetBet Enterprises Limited” where the operator’s footer says “Ltd.”, and some names in capitals, such as “FITZDARES LIMITED” and “DABBLE SPORTS UK LTD”.
3. Open the entry. Each company has its own card with the licence number, the licence activity, the issue and expiry dates and the trading names.
4. Check the trading names. The brand you use should appear there. If the company is on the register but the brand is not listed, ask the operator which licence covers that brand before you deposit.
5. Stop if the company is not there. No entry means no GRAI licence on the date of the last update. Do not open an account until the operator can point you to its entry.

The register in numbers

The downloaded file is the quickest way to see the whole market. The version we read on 3 October 2026 held 36 entries for 35 companies: 32 Remote Betting licences, 3 Remote Betting Intermediary licences and 1 In-person Betting licence, all of them business-to-consumer. It held no remote gaming licence, because none has been issued.

Brands and companies are not one-to-one

One company can hold a single licence for several brands. ElectraWorks Limited holds GRAI-0652-RB-26-0001, and its register entry lists these trading names: Sportingbet, PartyCasino (Sports), PartyPoker (Sports), Bwin, Coral. A search for any of those brands leads back to the same company and the same number.

A brand can also sit under two different companies. On the register, PPB Counterparty Services Limited (GRAI-1003-RB-26-0001) lists the trading names Betfair, Paddy Power, while Betfair International plc holds a separate Remote Betting Intermediary licence, GRAI-1074-RBI-26-0001, with the trading name Betfair Exchange. The same brand name therefore points to a bookmaker licence and an exchange licence held by two companies. See Betting exchanges and bookmakers.

Step 3: match the number, activity and dates

Put the register entry and the bookmaker’s licence line side by side and compare them field by field.

Reading a licence number

The numbers on the register follow one pattern: GRAI, a four-digit reference for the company, a code for the activity (RB for Remote Betting, RBI for Remote Betting Intermediary, IPB for In-person Betting), then 26 and 0001. The company reference stays the same across that company’s licences: Exchange Platform Solutions Limited holds both GRAI-0313-RB-26-0001 and GRAI-0313-RBI-26-0001. The 26 matches the year the licences were issued. We could not find a key to the format published by GRAI; this reading comes from the register entries themselves.

Reading the dates

Licences on the register run for three years, for example from 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2029. The first licences took effect on 1 July 2026; others followed through August and September 2026. A recent issue date is normal at this stage and tells you nothing about the bookmaker’s history before July 2026.

One detail can look like an error. The individual cards on the register show an issue date one day earlier than the downloaded file: Betway Limited’s card showed 30 June 2026 where the file showed 1 July 2026. The difference appears to come from time-zone handling, not from two different licences. We use the date in the downloaded file and in the operator’s own footer.

When something does not match

• One digit is different. Copy both numbers into a note and compare again. If they still differ, the register is the reference; ask the operator to explain.
• The activity is Remote Betting Intermediary. That is an exchange licence, not a bookmaker licence. It fits a betting exchange, not a site that prices bets itself.
• The number on the register looks cut short. On 3 October 2026, DABBLE SPORTS UK LTD appeared as GRAI-0995-RB-26-000, one digit shorter than every other number, in both the file and the card. Treat a case like this as a register detail to watch, and match the company name and dates as well.
• The expiry date has passed. No licence on the register expires before mid-2029, so a past date means you are looking at something other than a current GRAI entry.

The bookmakers in this atlas, as listed on the register

The table shows the register fields for each bookmaker in the atlas. Licence numbers link to the GRAI register; brand names open our operator files. Register checked 4 October 2026.

Remote Betting, Remote Betting Intermediary and In-person Betting

GRAI currently issues three kinds of licence to businesses that deal directly with the public. Each has its own code in the licence number.

• Remote Betting (RB) is the bookmaker licence for betting online or by phone. Under section 3(2) of the Act, a bookmaker is a person who sets odds, accepts bets and undertakes to pay out winnings. Every bookmaker in this atlas holds this licence.
• Remote Betting Intermediary (RBI) is the licence for a betting exchange: a business that provides a facility for people to bet against one another, not against the business. On 3 October 2026 three companies held one. GRAI also treats prediction markets that provide betting as intermediaries.
• In-person Betting (IPB) covers betting in shops, not websites. One entry was on the register on 3 October 2026, and GRAI said in-person licensing would follow later in 2026.

There is no Remote Gaming licence on the register. GRAI has not opened applications for gaming licences; it expects to open them during 2027 and 2028. Any claim that an online casino holds a GRAI licence is therefore wrong at the date of this guide.

The difference between the first two licences is more than a letter in the number. A bookmaker is the other side of your bet; an exchange is not. That changes how prices are made and how the operator earns, which we explain in Betting exchanges and bookmakers: two different GRAI licences.

What the register does not show

The register answers one question well: does this company hold this licence, for this activity, for these dates? It leaves several questions open.

• Website addresses. Each card has a Domain Names field, but it was empty on all 35 company cards when we checked every one on 3 October 2026. The register does not tell you which addresses a licence covers.
• Sanctions and warnings. The register does not show enforcement history. GRAI publishes enforcement action on a separate page; on 3 October 2026 it listed no published sanction against a licensee. Decisions of other regulators, such as the UK Gambling Commission, appear on their own registers, and we note them with dates in each operator file.
• Who owns the company. The register lists the licensee, not its parent group. Ownership is covered in Who owns which bookmaker in Ireland.
• Product terms. Payment methods, limits, withdrawal steps and complaint routes are set by each operator in its terms. See Paying in and withdrawing and Complaints about a bookmaker.
• Applications in progress. Some companies have published a notice of intent to apply. A notice of intent is not a licence, and the register lists only licences already issued.
• How a suspension would appear. GRAI can suspend or revoke a licence. We could not confirm how a suspended licence would be shown on the register, so if a bookmaker you use disappears from the list, stop and check GRAI’s news page.

How we link an address to a licence

Because the register does not list domains, the link between a website and a licence comes from the website itself. For each bookmaker in this atlas, we open the page our listing points to from an Irish IP address and record the licence line the operator shows to customers in Ireland, with the date. If the page does not name a GRAI licensee and number that match the register, the bookmaker is not listed.

The address can look unexpected. A bookmaker may serve Ireland from a .com or .co.uk address, and a page may show prices in sterling. What counts is the licence statement the page makes for customers in the Republic of Ireland, matched against the register. Where the operator’s page and the register disagree, we follow the register and say so in the operator file.

Copies and look-alike sites

Some addresses borrow a licensed brand’s name without belonging to the licensee. During our checks in early October 2026 we found unofficial copies and unrelated sites using familiar names. We list them as text only, without links:

Signs that an address is not the licensee’s

• The brand name is spelt with an extra letter or hyphen, or has “ireland”, “official” or “casino” added to it.
• The footer names no company, no GRAI number, or a number that is not on the register.
• The number on the page belongs to a different activity: for example, an exchange number on a page that offers casino games.
• Buttons send you on to a different domain before you reach a sign-up page.
• You reached the page from an unsolicited message, a social post or a search advert you did not expect.

What to do

Do not enter personal or payment details. Type the address you know into the browser instead, or reach the bookmaker through the link in its register-matched footer. We could not confirm a dedicated GRAI form for reporting look-alike sites; GRAI can take court action against unlicensed betting and its advertising under section 75. If a copy uses the name of a bookmaker in this atlas, tell us at support@rivoatlas.com and we will add a note to the operator file.

Old Revenue numbers and outdated terms

Before July 2026, online bookmakers serving Ireland held a remote bookmaker’s licence from Revenue, with a seven-digit number. Those licences ended on 30 June 2026, and the Betting Act 1931 under which they were issued was repealed from 5 February 2026. A seven-digit Revenue number is not a current licence, and Revenue’s old list of remote bookmakers is no longer a reference.

Old numbers still turn up. Comparison sites that have not been updated describe bookmakers as licensed by Revenue, and some operators’ own terms lag behind their footers. Two examples from our checks on 3 October 2026:

Kwiff: the footer of the Irish site names Kwiff Limited and GRAI-1125-RB-26-0001. When we read the Irish terms (version IE1.0, last updated 30/06/2026) on 3 October 2026, clause 2.2 still referred to an Irish Revenue licence, reference 1015903, held “until such time” as GRAI issued formal licences. The footer is current; that clause is not. Both facts are on the operator file.

BOYLE Sports: the footer names Boylesports (Gibraltar) Limited and GRAI-0852-RB-26-0001. The same block also shows “Licence Number 1010144” for Ireland and other accepted jurisdictions. We could not confirm what that seven-digit number refers to; it has the shape of a former Revenue licence number. The GRAI number is the one that matches the register.

Neither example means the bookmaker lacks a GRAI licence: both numbers in the footers match the register. They show why we check the register entry, the footer and the terms separately, and why the date of each check matters. In our scoring, out-of-date Revenue references in the Irish terms reduce the “Licence & register” score; the details are in the methodology.

How the atlas runs the same check

Every operator file in this atlas is built on the steps in this guide, done in a fixed order.

1. We download the register file from GRAI and compare it with the previous version.
2. For each bookmaker, we match the company, the licence number, the activity, the dates and the trading names.
3. We open the page our listing points to from an Irish IP address and record the licence line it shows to customers in Ireland, with the date.
4. We read the Irish terms for the licence clause and for any out-of-date reference to Revenue.
5. Any change goes into the register changes log, and a bookmaker that no longer matches the register is removed from the atlas.

We repeat the register check at least once a month. The last check for this page was on 4 October 2026. The full list of operator files shows the same fields for every bookmaker, and the methodology explains how the licence check feeds into the 0–10 atlas score.

We may receive a commission when readers open an account through links on this site. Commission does not decide whether a bookmaker passes the licence check, and it never changes a licence fact. If you find a mismatch between this atlas and the register, write to support@rivoatlas.com with the brand, the number and the date you checked; we correct confirmed errors and note the date of the correction.

Help in Ireland

A licence check is about the operator. If you are worried about your own betting, or someone else’s, these services are free and listed by GRAI on its Get Help page:

• GamblingCare National Helpline — 1800 936 725, open 24 hours, 365 days a year (gamblingcare.ie).
• HSE Drugs and Alcohol Helpline — 1800 459 459, weekdays from 9.30am to 5.30pm.
• Extern Problem Gambling — 089 241 5401, free counselling across the island of Ireland (problemgambling.ie).
• Gamblers Anonymous Ireland — peer support groups around the country (gamblersanonymous.ie).

Every GRAI licensee offers deposit limits, time-outs and self-exclusion. Ireland’s National Gambling Exclusion Register is provided for in the Act but is not yet operating, so self-exclusion is done with each operator. GRAI also lists blocking software and bank gambling blocks. More on the tools in Responsible gambling.