Introduction
In popular culture, the Irish are commonly associated with two vices: drinking and gambling. Both stereotypes have some ground in reality. Let’s stick with gambling for this review.
Legal Status
Land based gambling is completely legal in Ireland, it’s been so in some form since 1854. Online poker isn’t illegal either – however, it’s unregulated. What’s most important is: if you live in Ireland, there’s nothing stopping you from playing online poker with your friends, even for real money. The poker sites operate under foreign licences.
Gambling in Ireland
However, poker is simply not the first choice for Irish people when it comes to gambling. That is lottery tickets or scratch-off cards. According to a 2019 survey conducted by the government, more than half, 56.7% of responders have admitted to have played the lottery that year.
Sports betting is another favorite: in 2019 alone, €4.3 billion was wagered on sporting events by the Irish. As for all forms of gambling, that number is a staggering €9.8 billion.
Major Industry Players
Out of that sum, online poker is nothing but a small piece. Despite not being regulated, there is absolutely no chance for legal trouble if locals choose to play on foreign poker sites. All of the major poker sites, such as partypoker, GGPoker, or 888Poker, are available to download and play on for Irish players – its legality is in no question.
Ireland has its very own major online gambling company: Paddy Power was founded in Dublin in 1988 and is still headquartered in the Irish capital city. They are primarily an online sportsbook, but it also offers online poker. Also, in 2020, their parent company, Flutter Entertainment, bought the biggest online poker room in the world, PokerStars.
Partypoker, another online poker giant, is also connected to Ireland. They hosted the Irish Poker Open, the oldest European tournament series, on their servers in 2020 and 2021, when the Coronairus pandemic prevented it from taking place live. You can read the reviews of partypoker and other great online poker sites below on this page.
Famous Irish Poker Players
Ireland has given poker many great Texas Hold’em players: 1999 WSOP Main Event champion JJ Noel Furlong is from Dublin, Ireland. Phil Laak was also born in that city – however, he grew up in the US. Nicknamed “the Unabomber”, he’s best known for appearing on classic poker shows such as Poker After Dark on NBC or High Stakes Poker on The Game Show Network.
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Our Selection of Poker Sites in Ireland
- Overall Rating 90%
- Software 95%
- Games 85%
- Offers 85%
- Payments 90%
- €20 in tickets (Instant) + €200 Welcome Bonus (Play through)
- More than 15 years of existence
- Best Room for Recreational Players
- Software Is Fast and User Friendly
- All Third-Party Software is Banned
- Few tournaments with decent prize pools
- Limited Player Pool
In Short:
At the point when you're planning to start playing Poker and have a shot in in a beginner friendly condition, Unibet is maybe the best choice open!
- Overall Rating 90%
- Software 95%
- Games 90%
- Offers 70%
- Payments 80%
- Great Rakeback!
- Soft Games
- GTD Tournaments % Freerolls
- Great, very smooth PC software
- Good Mobile software
- Getting more competitive
In Short:
With action available from micro to the highest stakes online, GGNet is an ideal network for both beginners and confirmed players !
- Overall Rating 85%
- Software 90%
- Games 85%
- Offers 90%
- Payments 80%
- 200% Deposit Bonus up to 2000$ (clear at 20%)
- Wide choice of Games & Tournaments
- 35% Cashback with SMP
- Secure & Reliable
- PC version only through Emulation and no MAC version
- No HUD available
In Short:
The BestPoker Software is part of the iPoker Network, and is famous for being simple to explore, and is quite exceptional in the online poker world. Games run both in British Pounds (GBP) and Euros (EUR). No-Limit Hold’em traffic is incredible at all stakes.
Play on private apps from Ireland
Play with Bitcoin from Ireland
The games running on SWC Poker are played in BTC as a currency.
Instant and secure transactions using USDT, ETH, BTC or CHP tokens and no KYC checks.
Ireland Poker Sites FAQs
Is online poker legal in Ireland?
Yes. Or, to put it more accurately, it’s not illegal. There is no legislation in effect that covers online casino and card games. The closest thing to it is the Betting Act of 2015 which defines “remote bookmakers” who need to apply for licences from the Revenue Commissioners.
The government has been trying to put together a comprehensive online gambling bill since 2013 – however, until now, to no avail. In the meantime, the Irish are free to play online poker on whichever foreign site they choose to.
What is the legal age for gambling in Ireland?
It’s 18.
What are the Best Online Poker Sites in Ireland?
Because of the unregulated nature of the market, virtually all foreign poker sites are accessible – unless the site itself decides to restrict Irish players, which none of them do.
For Irish players, we recommend these roms: partypoker, GGPoker, 888poker, the Pokio real money poker app, and Best Poker (part of the iPoker Network). You can read the reviews of all of these rooms below.
Which Irish poker site accepts Bitcoin & Cryptocurrencies?
Americas Cardroom and Tigergaming part of the Winning Poker Network and Chico Network, accepts deposits in Bitcoin. So does Intertops (Horizon Network). Players contacting us to play on GGPOKER can also deposit via Bitcoin
Latest poker news about Ireland
Other Poker & Gambling News in Ireland
- 2021/08/31 – Frank Lillis is still leading the Irish online poker rankings – Frank “Denman98” Lillis is leading with more than 1,500 points in Irish rankings, after winning several games including the WSOP Online: $525 Bounty Hunters HR, the $215 Sunday Warm-Up and the $1,050 GGMasters High Rollers. He is currently ranked at 39th internationally.
- 2021/08/31 – Noel Furlong, only Irish player to ever win the WSOP died – Noel Furlong, who won the WSOP Main Event in 1999, died of natural causes at the age of 83. A successful poker player but also a horse trainer, he won two times at the Irish Poker Open and participated several times to the WSOP Main Event.
