Gala Review

Advantage player Issues

Written By: Casinomeister
Dec 17, 2023
Affiliate Disclosure Affiliate Disclosure Our content contains affiliate links and, yes, we may earn a commission if you sign up or deposit through them. At Casinomeister, we’ve been an advocate of fair play since 1998 so you can rest assured we don’t endorse just anyone. We only back operators who are licensed, regulated, and have passed our no-nonsense vetting process. Gamble responsibly, know the rules, and make sure you’re of legal age in your country.

Casinomeister's Verdict

Avoid this casino.

Bwin casino and sportsbook was one of the first European licensed casinos that was listed at Casinomeister back in 2001. Back then, it was called Betandwin – it was an Austrian casino operation, and their license? It was from East Germany (a non-existent country in the 2000s), but it had no expiration date. The operators had a good laugh about this; it was a loophole that they could exploit.

As the years went by, they changed the name to Bwin and began promoting themselves at major sports events. This impressed loads of people, and their heads swelled up so much that they could not care less about the websites that put them on the map, like Casinomeister. Flash forward to years later (like about now), and they have become a massive corporate behemoth that could not care less about their players nor their marketing partners. Bigger is not better.

They may seem to be a great casino because they say they are. But McDonalds will tell you they have great burgers, too – but they are crap.

Ethically challenged

1 Our Rating
6 Player Rating
galacasino.com
2008
Payout speed
starstarstarstarempty star
Withdrawal limits
starstarstarstarempty star
Customer service
empty starempty starempty starempty starempty star
Software & Games
starstarstarstarempty star
Licensing
starstarstarstarempty star
Gibraltar, UKGC
Microgaming, NextGen Gaming, Playtech, IGT...

First Impression

Bwin Casino could have offered players a superb iGaming experience, but they lost the plot when they became a corporate gambling mess.

From Our Forum:

Pros

  • Thousands of games

  • Tons of software providers

  • Fast cashouts

  • Strong licenses

  • Great video poker selection

  • Sports betting and poker facilities

Cons

  • In the “Not Recommended” section here at Casinomeister

  • The welcome bonus isn’t overly generous

  • Poor loyalty program

BONUSES AND PROMOTIONS

While writing this Bwin Casino review, we paid close attention to the main welcome bonus offered, along with any other promotions – our findings below:

Welcome Bonus

The main Bwin Casino welcome bonus at Bwin Casino is pretty standard; it’s a simple 100% matched deposit bonus up to $200. There’s not much more to the main welcome bonus than that – and you don’t have to enter a bonus code to claim it. The welcome bonus carries several terms and conditions, the main of which we’ll outline below.

First of all, you must complete the wagering requirements of the welcome bonus within 30 days. The wagering requirement restrictions for the main welcome bonus are 35X, so it’s not the worst wagering requirement rules we’ve ever seen.

You’re also limited on how much you can bet. While this limit differs from country to country, it generally appears the max bet while playing with the welcome bonus funds is $5.

No-Deposit & Free Spins Offers

When writing this Bwin Casino overview, we didn’t come across any no-deposit bonuses or free spins bonus codes at Bwin Casino. If this changes, we’ll update this Bwin Casino page accordingly and let you know how to claim it at the casino. Bwin Casino, however, rarely seems to offer no-deposit bonuses – so don’t expect to see any no-deposit bonuses at Bwin Casino any time soon!

VIP and Loyalty Programs

While Bwin doesn’t offer a dedicated loyalty program, they do run regular promos.

Banking & Payment Methods

Banking options and payment methods can often be an issue at online casinos, especially with specific countries not allowed to use specific payment methods. Thankfully, Bwin Casino offers a significant number of payment methods, so players from all countries can find a suitable banking option.

At Bwin, one of the most popular methods of making deposits and withdrawals is using debit and credit cards. Bwin Casino accepts most of the world’s leading card providers, including Visa, Visa Electron, MasterCard and Maestro. With cards, you can transfer your funds instantly and also request withdrawals.

Both Verified by Visa and MasterCard Secure Code are state-of-the-art security features that help prevent fraud and ensure your money is kept safe. Bwin doesn’t charge any fees for deposits made using debit and credit cards.

Bwin Casino also offers a wide variety of E-Wallets to players, which allows you to deposit funds and begin playing popular games instantly since deposits are credited immediately to your betting account. Popular EWallets available include Skrill, Neteller and PayPal. This minimum deposit of $10 ensures almost all players should be able to gamble responsibly and play at a comfortable level.

Bwin Casino Withdrawal Speed

Bwin typically processes withdrawals quickly. Withdrawals may be delayed when you withdraw after claiming welcome bonuses (in which case some additional checks may need to be made) or when you’re a brand-new customer who hasn’t verified your account yet.

Withdrawals are usually processed within 12 hours, although non-UK players can cancel their withdrawals while remaining in a pending state. Once Bwin processes your withdrawal, it can take a few minutes to a few business days for the money to appear in your account, depending on which banking method you choose to use.

Average Based on 8 real users

REQUEST DATE
COUNTRY
BANK METHOD
REVERSE TIME
PAYOUT HRS:MIN
ID REQUIRED
WEEKEND REQUEST
AVERAGE
8:7
10:21
13 September, 2015
Germany
Neteller
:00
16:00
No
No
13 September, 2015
Germany
Skrill
18:00
18:00
No
No
13 September, 2015
Germany
Neteller
18:00
18:00
No
No
07 April, 2016
United Kingdom
Neteller
5:00
5:13
No
No
07 April, 2016
United Kingdom
Neteller
6:00
6:07
No
No

Responsible gaming

Here at Casinomeister, we take great care to look at the responsible gambling tools available at an online casino when putting reviews together, and while writing this review, we were happy to find that the site does indeed offer a wide variety tools that players can use to ensure their online gambling doesn’t get out of control.

The most commonly-used responsible gambling tool is the deposit limit function, and this limits the amount of money you can fund your account with, on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. Once you’ve set this limit, if you wish to remove or increase it, you’ll need to wait 24 hours. Lowering the limit takes place immediately.

In terms of other responsible gambling tools on offer, the online casino also allows players to take a time-out; this closes your account for a period of between 24 hours and six years.

You can also choose to use their self-exclusion function if you like, which completely shuts off access to your account for anywhere from 6 months to five years. However, you should use the function with caution, as it’s irreversible, and it will also close any online casino accounts you hold with other sites running on the same online gambling license.

Customer support

Bwin was listed in the accredited section back when they were small-time – Triple-A-Casino and Betandwin. This was back in 2000/2001, but they began to lose touch with our player community as the years went by.

They also initiated a controversial retroactive term in their terms and conditions for their affiliates (which most considered predatory) to include our directors. So consequently, they were dropped from our site.

Additionally, they were implementing withdrawal limits to progressive payouts. They removed this rogue term in September 2016 when they switched from a Playtech-powered casino to one owned by GVC. Oddly enough, it reappeared in 2017 (which caused them to be listed in the Rogue Pit) but was removed in 2018. We don’t know whether it was ever enforced, but the good news is that it is no longer there. This was confirmed by their representatives.

They are now listed in Not Recommended.

The easiest way to contact the customer support team is to give them a call. The phone number you need to ring varies depending on which country you’re from, but UK players, for example, can reach them on 00350 200 77761 from Monday to Sunday from 10 AM to 10 PM.

Rather astonishing, there isn’t a live chat facility at Bwin Casino, which seems strange, especially for a casino as big – and well-known – as Bwin. The lack of a live chat facility makes us seriously question the casino’s commitment to taking players’ questions.

The lack of a live chat facility is part of why we don’t recommend them, and with it being so easy to set up – and such a cost-effective customer support solution for the casino – we’re baffled as to why they don’t have a live chat set up yet.

You can also reach the customer support team via email if you don’t want to give the customer support team a call – or you need help outside of the customer support team’s working hours. However, there isn’t a dedicated email address for you to contact, and you need to head to the “Contact Us” page on their website and fill out an online contact form. A customer support team member will then get back to you within 24 hours.

If you need urgent help and support and can’t immediately get in touch with the customer support team, you can also check out the site’s detailed FAQ section. This is found in the “Help” section at Bwin Casino, and to be fair to them, it’s fairly in-depth and comprehensive. So you should be able to find answers to the most commonly asked questions, hopefully negating the need for you to have to phone or email the customer support team in the end.

KYC

New players should expect to be asked to complete a KYC (Know Your Customer) check at Bwin Casino. This goes for players from all countries, regardless of whether you’re making a minimum deposit, whether you are or aren’t claiming casino bonuses, and regardless of whether you play video slots, Roulette, Baccarat, or bet in the sportsbook.

This is a legal requirement set out by their regulators, and it means that Bwin needs to be able to verify who you are, that you’re above the age of 18, and they need to know where you live.

When you’re asked to complete a KYC check, you’ll need to submit proof of your ID and Proof of Address. Once you’ve submitted the required documents, the casino will process them – and while it can take up to 48 hours, it rarely takes longer than an hour or two for the casino to successfully verify player accounts.

Website Experience and Features

Desktop and Mobile Gaming

While more and more players choose to play their favourite games at mobile casino sites, few iGaming operators have truly adapted. Just a small handful offer a downloadable mobile casino app – something that many players actively look for when choosing a new online casino.

That makes Bwin Casino’s mobile offering all the more impressive. Their mobile app is available to download free of charge on all iOS and Android devices. Bwin casino play allows you to play your favourite live games, poker games, video slots – or even play in the Bwin poker facility – all from your mobile device!

In this review, Bwin showed us how much time and effort went into developing this mobile casino. There’s a huge number of real money games to play in the mobile casino – from a wide variety of software providers. It’s open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, so you can play, claim casino bonuses, and check your wagering requirements status of active deposit bonuses from a single click!

Plus, for players who don’t want to download the mobile app, Bwin Casino also offers a fully mobile-optimized version of their website. It can be opened and used from your mobile device’s internet browser. This site uses state-of-the-art SSL Encryption to ensure your sensitive information is safe and secure.

Bwin has truly outdone themselves with mobile gaming, and we were incredibly impressed, when writing this casino review, with how versatile, robust and easy-to-use both the mobile Bwin Casino app and mobile-optimized website were to use.

Sports Betting

Bwin is perhaps best known for its sports betting facilities and is one of the biggest sportsbooks on the planet. It attracts millions of punters every year and offers a staggering number of betting markets and events, giving even the likes of Bet365 and Betfair a good run for their money.

The sports betting section at the site is under a tab called “Bwin Sports.” Bwin sports offers you the chance to bet on football, American football and Ice Hockey, to Horse Racing, Greyhound Racing and Tennis.

Bwin’s sports section also offers live betting, allowing you to place in-play bets on many betting markets from all over the world. They’re known for offering some of the best odds around, and players will find that they can seamlessly transfer funds from the online casino to the sportsbook at the press of a button. You do not need to create a secondary account to begin placing bets.

Brand games

Providers

You’ll find a huge selection of game developers and different Bwin Casino games on offer at Bwin, including the likes of 1X2 Network, Amatic Industries, Betdigital, Big Time, Blueprint, Bwin.party, Core, Edict egaming, ELK Studios, Evolution, Eyecon, Gamevy, Greentube, IGT, Inspired, iSoftBet, IWG, Microgaming, NetEnt, NextGen, Novomatic, OpenBet, PariPlay, Play’n GO, Pragmatic Play, Realistic Games, Red Tiger, SG Digital, SG Gaming, Slingo, Thunderkick, Williams Interactive, Yggdrasil, and Nolimit City.

Slot Games

While writing this Bwin review, we looked at the video slots and slot machines offered at the site. We found that the site offers a vast range of games, most of which can be played with the Bwin casino bonus – ensuring you can wager your bonus funds on games you like.

At the time of writing, some of the most popular video slots we found at the site included Pink Panther, Hot Gems, Great Blue, Diamond Valley, Dead or Alive II, Tiki Tumble, Lucky Halloween and Dragon’s Luck.

We like how you can play all of the slot games in demo mode before committing real money or even making your first deposit at the site. Whether playing for real or enjoying the full range of Bwin Casino free slots, there is something for everyone.

Live Casino

Evolution Gaming is the main driving force behind Bwin’s live casino, something we were happy to see when writing this Bwin review. Evolution is, by far, the clear market leader when it comes to live casino games. They offer everything from Live Roulette and Live Dealer Blackjack to Crazy Time, Monopoly Live and Dream Catcher.

The live casino and the live casino games can be played at low stakes, so you do not need to be a high-roller to start cashing in on the action.

Roulette

The selection of casino table games at Bwin is wide-ranging – you’ll find far more than that offered at most online casinos. The Roulette tables games available, for example, are extensive – and it’s clear that Bwin online casino caters to all types of players. You’ll find everything from American Roulette, European Roulette and Video Roulette to Premium American Roulette, Premium Roulette Pro and Roulette Pro.

Just remember, if you claim the Bwin casino bonus, you likely won’t be able to play the table games – and if you can, they’ll contribute towards the deposit bonus to a much lower degree.

Blackjack

When reviewing the Bwin online casino, we found a great selection of Blackjack titles to choose from, including Vegas Blackjack, Lucky 7 Blackjack, Atlantic City Blackjack, Blackjack Micro Limit, European Blackjack, Blackjack Perfect Pairs, Blackjack Single Deck and others.

Table Games and Video Poker

It’s important not to get video poker, and Bwin Poker confused with one another; Bwin Poker is a separate section of their website that offers online poker – cash games, tournaments, and Sit ‘n Go’s.

Video poker is a type of casino game – and there’s a good selection of video poker machines to play at Bwin. You’ll find Deuces Wild, Jacks or Better, Bonus 100 Poker, Bonus 100 Poker Deluxe, and Melon Madness Poker. Bwin has a great selection of video poker machines, but it’s not the same as their poker room – which is powered by iTech Labs.

When it comes to other casino table games, you’ll find a decent selection – proving the site offers much more than just Blackjack, Roulette and live dealer games. This includes Sic Bo, Red Dog and Oasis Poker.

Progressive jackpots

Bwin was previously powered almost exclusively by Playtech, but today, they offer games from a huge number of game developers and game studios. As a result of this, they can offer players a wide variety of progressive jackpots to enjoy. These jackpot games can all be found under their own dedicated tab – and some offer you the chance to win life-changing sums of money.

Microgaming’s Mega Moolah and Mega Moolah ISIS are the casino’s two most popular progressive jackpots. They offer you the chance to win tens of millions of dollars from a single spin. These games have become somewhat iconic in the iGaming industry – Mega Moolah holds the World Record for the biggest jackpot win in history!

You’ll find a few of NetEnt’s jackpot slots on offer, too, including Hall of Gods and Divine Fortune. Red Tiger Gaming’s “Daily Jackpots” can be found at Bwin as well, all of which guarantee one of the jackpots will be awarded by the end of the day. There’s an impressive selection of jackpot slots on offer at Bwin Casino.

About the Team and History

Bwin – full name, Bwin Interactive Entertainment AG – and formally known as betandwin – is an Austrian company owned by GVC Holdings. Bwin is one of the biggest online gambling operators on the planet, boasting an employee roster of more than 1,500 and generating more than $420 million every year.

The company was established in 1997 – although it wasn’t until 2006 that they were officially known as Bwin. Their first major claim to fame was when they had their initial public offering on the Austrian Stock Exchange back in 2000.

In the decade that followed, Bwin started focusing mainly on sports betting – but later migrated into other online gambling products, including an online casino, bingo rooms and poker games.

Bwin is known for sponsoring several football teams, poker events and other major sporting events – and they were the main sponsor for Spanish football giant Real Madrid between 2007 and 2013. They were also a premium partner of FC Bayern Munich.

The site operates in many countries, and they own several licenses. Their UK Gambling Commission license allows them to operate within the UK market. They’re also licensed by the Kahnawake Gaming Commission and are licensed to operate in Belize, Italy, Germany, Mexico, Croatia, Austria, Canada and France.

Complaints and Track Record

Bwin was listed in the accredited section back when they were small-time – Triple-A-Casino and Betandwin. This was back in 2000/2001, but they began to lose touch with our player community as the years went by.

They also initiated a controversial retroactive term in their terms and conditions for their affiliates (which are most considered predatory) to include our directors. So consequently, they were dropped from the site.

Additionally, they were implementing withdrawal limits to progressive payouts. They removed this rogue term in September 2016 when they switched from a Playtech-powered casino to one owned by GVC. Oddly enough, it reappeared in 2017 (which caused them to be listed in the Rogue Pit) but was removed in 2018. We don’t know whether it was ever enforced, but the good news is that it is no longer there. This was confirmed by their representatives.

They are now listed in Not Recommended – they are not Accredited by Casinomeister. Bwin is a huge company that is well-branded. You can’t watch any sports – virtually anywhere – without seeing Bwin ads on billboards, player’s kits, or televised commercials.

Casino Facts

Founded2008
AccreditedEx-Accredited
JurisdictionsGibraltar, UKGC
Casino representativeCasino Executive
Affiliate programgalapartners.co.uk
Is this casino certified at CasinomeisterNo
Payout Time0-5 hrs
Reverse Time0-5 hrs
Weekend PayoutsYes
Locks WithdrawalsYes
English
Array
Array
Casinomeister
ConnectConnectConnectConnect

The man with the plan here at Casinomeister. Bryan Bailey has been running Casinomeister since its launch in June of 1998. He has watched the industry grow from its primeval stage to what it is now. The Meister has attended nearly 100 conferences in the past 20 years and has either been a speaker or a panel moderator for at least 60 events. He has always been an advocate of fairness and reason and is known to like German beer, a good Scotch, and astrophotography.
bryan@casinomeister.com

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