Trust Score 81/100 · Tier 1
81/100Tier 16 componentsOperating since 2012, SportPesa is a betting platform tracked in the SharkBetting Atlas.
Read whySportPesa
Is it safe to bet with? Licence, owner and complaint record, verified 2026
Operating since 2012, SportPesa is a betting platform tracked in the SharkBetting Atlas.
- ACTIVE LICENCES
- 3
- PLAYER REVIEWS
- 2k
Across 3 jurisdictions
Review platforms + apps
Our independent 0-100 check, computed from public records. Not paid for, not editable by operators.
Quick scan
Author and sources
SportPesa at a glance
At a glance
SportPesa sits in the top 1% of bookmakers we track and earns a Tier-1 licensing posture. The trust score and tier shown in the header above are broken down by 6 weighted components in the score panel below.
What's behind the 81/100
6 weighted checks, total 100. Each bar shows the score, weight, and what it means.
What this score means: Active licences in tier-1 jurisdictions provide strong consumer protection and dispute-resolution channels.
Evidence: Unclassified regulator: Kenya-BCLB
What this score means: Ownership traces to a publicly-known parent group with documented filings.
Evidence: Companies House entry verified for parent group
What this score means: Security posture acceptable but with some gaps (weak headers or unpatched CVE on shared IP).
Evidence: Mozilla Observatory: C
What this score means: Atlas could not verify reviews signals for this brand.
Evidence: No usable review signals (TP<50 reviews or missing)
What this score means: No fraud-intel hits, no AML enforcement actions, no KEV CVEs on infrastructure.
Evidence: UKGC enforcement: 1 fine(s) (-10)
What this score means: Domain age, hosting tier, and CDN posture indicate a stable long-running operation.
Evidence: Domain age: 14y
SportPesa overview
Operating since 2012, SportPesa is a betting platform tracked in the SharkBetting Atlas. Its primary domain has a verifiable online record dating back to 2012. Ultimate ownership traces back to Mr Jonathan Swerdlow through a 2-step corporate chain. It holds 3 active licences, from MGA and SA-WCGRB. Public hosting infrastructure is classified as tier-1 hosting (Akamai International B.V.).
Its SharkBetting Trust Score v2 sits at 81 out of 100 (high confidence, strong band).
SportPesa's origins in Kenya and East Africa
SportPesa was launched in Kenya in February 2014 by Pevans East Africa, a locally founded company, with Ronald Karauri as CEO. It grew rapidly to become one of the largest sports betting operators in East Africa and was notable for being the first African-founded betting brand to secure major European football shirt sponsorship.
In Tanzania, the platform operates under a licence from the Gaming Board of Tanzania alongside its Kenyan BCLB licensing. The Atlas also records an MGA licence (Malta Gaming Authority), reflecting a separate European-market legal entity.
Major European sports sponsorships
Between 2017 and 2020, SportPesa held a shirt sponsorship deal with Everton FC in the English Premier League, reported at approximately £7 million per year, which the club described as the largest sponsorship agreement in its history at the time of signing. The deal was terminated in February 2020.
In January 2019, SportPesa became the title sponsor of the Racing Point Formula 1 team, formally branded as SportPesa Racing Point F1 Team for the 2019 season, reportedly at $8 million for the first year. The Racing Point deal was also terminated partway through its planned term, with the team citing difficulties in SportPesa's home market as the reason.
The scale of these sponsorships is relevant context: they reflect the operator's growth trajectory in the 2017-2019 period, and their termination coincided with the Kenyan regulatory dispute described below.
The 2019-2020 Kenya shutdown and return
In July 2019, Kenya's Betting Control and Licensing Board declined to renew SportPesa's licence, citing a dispute over unpaid taxes. The Kenyan government had introduced a 20 percent tax on betting stakes, which the operator contested, arguing it was contrary to the country's excise duty law. The government also directed telecoms operator Safaricom to block mobile money services to affected betting companies, which effectively prevented customer deposits.
SportPesa ceased operations in Kenya following the licence non-renewal and later attempted to return, with operations resuming in November 2020 after the legal and regulatory position became clearer. The Kenyan Parliament's Finance Committee subsequently debated and adjusted the stake-tax rate. The episode is documented across reporting by iGaming Business and regional financial press.
For players outside Kenya, the episode is primarily background context on the brand's history rather than a current operational risk, but it illustrates how the operator has navigated serious regulatory confrontation in its primary market.
Weight the Trust Score yourself
Drag the sliders to match your own priorities. SportPesa’s score recomputes live with the published weighting rules (missing data counts as a conservative prior at half weight). See the full methodology for red-flag and coverage caps.
Your weighted score
81
Atlas default
81
Delta
+0.1
Licensing & regulatory footprint
Country access
Hover or tap a region for the country list.
Europe0 accepted, 0 blocked
Americas0 accepted, 0 blocked
Asia0 accepted, 0 blocked
Africa2 accepted, 0 blocked
Oceania0 accepted, 0 blocked
Activity timeline
Atlas tracked 4 timeline sources for this brand: licence registers, UKGC enforcement sitemap, certificate transparency, atlas verification. 2 returned signal so far. Atlas first observed this brand on 2026-04-19.Latest event: Atlas last verified on 2026-04-19.
Public reviews
What to expect
Identity checks
Standard: ID on first withdrawal
A general expectation for this brand type, not an individually verified KYC audit. Check the operator’s own terms before depositing.
Mobile apps
How we know: Apple App Store + Google Play Store metadata, atlas brand catalogue. Last checked 2026-04-19.
Not convinced by SportPesa?
These brands currently outscore SportPesa in the Atlas ranking. Same scoring code, no placement fees; check that each holds a licence in your country before switching.
Frequently asked questions
Is SportPesa safe?
SportPesa has a Trust Score of 81/100 with high data confidence. It rates well on independent signals: licensing 86/100, reviews 50/100, corporate 80/100, security 55/100. No active red flags are recorded against the brand.
Who owns SportPesa?
SportPesa is operated by TGP Europe Limited and ultimately owned by Mr Jonathan Swerdlow. The licensee is incorporated in England & Wales (company number 15611265). Disclosed corporate chain: TGP Europe Limited -> Mr Jonathan Swerdlow. The same operator family also runs 12bet, betvision, bk8, bob88 and 5 other brands.
Is SportPesa licensed?
SportPesa appears in regulator registers classified by the Trust Score v2 scorer as MGA (tier-1). The licensing component scores 86/100 in Trust Score v2. Tier-1 status means strict KYC, AML, segregated player funds, and mandatory dispute resolution. Tier-2 covers Gibraltar, Isle of Man, Alderney, Kahnawake, and KSA-NL. Tier-3 covers Curacao-style light-touch frameworks.
Does SportPesa have a mobile app?
SportPesa ships native apps on both iOS and Android, both verified by name and category match against the public store listings. On the App Store, "SportPesa Score" rates 3.40/5 across 10 reviews, published by SPS SPORTSOFT LIMITED (App Store category: Sports). On Google Play (package com.sportpesa.scores), the app rates 3.50/5 across 2,146 user reviews. Store ratings reflect user satisfaction with the app itself, not the underlying betting product, and can drift after major updates.
Where is SportPesa available?
SportPesa accepts players from 3 jurisdictions per atlas data, including Africa, South Africa, Tanzania. Availability lists are derived from public terms-of-service pages and licence registers; geofencing rules can be tighter than what is publicly stated, and accounts opened from restricted IPs are usually voided. Always verify your specific country on the official site before depositing.
What are alternatives to SportPesa?
Alternatives in the same operator family (parent groups: sbtech, tgp-europe) include 12bet, betvision, bk8, bob88, fun88 and 4 other branded clones. Same-family sites typically share the platform, licensing posture, payment rails, and corporate ownership, so a complaint pattern, regulator action, or AML failure at one site frequently recurs across siblings. Compare independent Trust Scores side by side before switching, and check whether the alternative holds the same licences in your country.
Is SportPesa's site secure?
SportPesa scores 55/100 on the Trust Score v2 security component, indicating a mid-tier security posture. Signals include: Mozilla Observatory grade C; HSTS enabled; hosted on tier-1 infrastructure (Akamai International B.V.). The security component blends HTTP-header hardening (HSTS, CSP, X-Frame-Options), TLS configuration, DNS hygiene (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), CDN/WAF presence, and hosting reputation; it does not assess the operator's internal security or breach history.
Compare SportPesa to alternatives
Pick up to two other atlas brands and see the verifiable stats side-by-side.
| Metric | This brand SportPesa | Alternative 1 Not selected | Alternative 2 Not selected |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trust Score | 81/100 | ||
| Tier | Tier 1 | ||
| Active licences | 3 | ||
| Player reviews | 2k | ||
| Top regulator | SA WCGRB | ||
| Regulator actions | None on file |
Brands listed by Trust Score. Comparison uses the same data Atlas publishes on each brand’s own page.
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Explore related atlas pages
Author and sources
Sources (4)
Citations backing every factual claim in this SportPesa profile, grouped by category. Atlas verifies each source on the date shown. External links open in a new tab.
Regulator records (2)
- [1]SportPesa licence record (no. MGA/B2C/506/2018) (Malta Gaming Authority)
- [2]Gambling business TGP Europe fined £316,250 (UK Gambling Commission)
Operator pages (1)
- [4]Domain registration record for sportpesa.com (RDAP (registry data))
Other (1)
- [3]Web-security scan of sportpesa.com (grade C) (Mozilla HTTP Observatory)Accessed
Trust score computed from 6 weighted components (licensing, corporate, security, reviews, threat intel, operational). License data verified against public authority records. Last verified 53 days ago. Sources cited: 4.
Last updated: 19 Apr 2026
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