In June 2026, Botswana’s gambling regulator did something it hadn’t done before: it published a notice naming exactly six operators cleared to take sports bets in the country — and warned punters that anyone betting with an unlisted platform has no guaranteed way to recover their money if something goes wrong. That list, confirmed by the Botswana Gambling Authority (BGA) and first reported by FocusGN, is the natural starting point for anyone searching for the best betting sites in Botswana 2026. This guide compares the six BGA-named operators — Betway, Sunbet, Bet267, PstBet, B-Bets and BetXplosion — and explains, briefly, where popular cross-border brands like Hollywoodbets and betPawa actually stand.
How We Compared Botswana’s Licensed Betting Sites
Every operator below is checked against the BGA’s own licensee register rather than affiliate marketing claims, following the same verification approach set out in our review methodology. Where review sites disagreed on a detail — an app that may or may not exist yet, a bonus figure quoted three different ways — we say so rather than pick a number at random.
- Licence status: confirmed against the BGA register, not just an operator’s own “licensed” badge
- Sports markets: what’s actually listed on the platform, local leagues included
- Mobile access: native app versus mobile-web only
- Payment channels: named, not walked through step by step
Botswana’s Six BGA-Licensed Betting Operators at a Glance
The BGA was established under the Gambling Act, 2012, which took full effect in April 2016 and covers casinos, lotteries and betting premises. The Act doesn’t specifically address online-only betting, which is why the regulator’s June 2026 notice mattered: it was the clearest signal yet of exactly which brands hold a Botswana betting licence today. Those six are Delta Bay (Pty) Ltd, trading as Betway Botswana; Sunbet; Mecaville Enterprises, trading as Bet267; PstBet Botswana (Pty) Ltd; SNB Investments, trading as B-Bets; and Direct Wholesale (Pty) Ltd, trading as BetXplosion.
1. Betway Botswana — Widest Sports Betting Markets
- Licence: BGA-licensed, operated by Delta Bay (Pty) Ltd
- Markets: English Premier League, La Liga and other major European leagues, plus Botswana Premier League fixtures
- Mobile: dedicated app available alongside a full mobile site
- Payments: supports Orange Money Botswana, MyZaka and FNB eWallet
Betway is the most established international name on the BGA’s list, and the breadth of its football coverage — from the biggest European leagues down to the domestic Botswana Premier League — is still its strongest selling point. See our full Betway profile for a closer look at the brand across African markets.
2. Sunbet Botswana — Sun International’s Local-First Sportsbook
- Licence: BGA-licensed; described as the first operator in the Sun International stable to secure a Botswana-specific licence
- Markets: football, tennis, basketball and horse racing, plus a growing esports list (CS2, League of Legends, Dota 2, Valorant)
- Mobile: reports are mixed — some reviews describe mobile-web only, others point to a native iOS listing; confirm current status in-app before relying on it
- Payments: Orange Money Botswana, MyZaka and FNB eWallet
Sunbet leans on Sun International’s hospitality pedigree rather than aggressive promotions, and its esports and in-play tooling (bet builders, live markets like next-goal and total corners) go further than most of the smaller local names on this list.
3. Bet267 — Botswana’s Newest Citizen-Backed Bookmaker
- Licence: BGA-licensed, operated by Mecaville Enterprises, launched in 2025
- Markets: football, basketball, tennis, handball, ice hockey and horse racing, with in-play betting and live stats
- Mobile: an Android app exists in some markets; iOS and a fuller rollout were still described as “planned” in recent reviews
- Payments: settles in Botswana Pula (BWP)
Bet267 markets itself as majority Batswana-owned, with a visible focus on local hiring at its Mogoditshane base. It’s the newest name on the BGA’s list, which shows in a leaner feature set than Betway or Sunbet — but also in an interface built specifically around local leagues rather than a repackaged global product.
4. PstBet Botswana — Simple, Local-League-Focused Betting
- Licence: BGA-licensed, operated by PstBet Botswana (Pty) Ltd, with branches in Gaborone West, Palapye, Francistown and Maun
- Markets: football, basketball, tennis and handball, with a notable lean toward the Botswana Premier League, Zambian Super League and Tanzanian Premier League
- Mobile: no dedicated app across the reviews we checked — mobile access runs through the browser
- Payments: Orange Money payouts are flagged as reliably fast in independent reviews
PstBet’s multi-town retail footprint — Gaborone, Palapye, Francistown and Maun — makes it one of the more physically accessible options outside the capital, even without a dedicated app.
5. B-Bets — Cash-First Betting Without a Digital Wallet
- Licence: BGA-licensed, operated by SNB Investments, single retail outlet at Gaborone Hotel Bus Rank
- Markets: standard sportsbook line-up accessed through a browser-based “book-a-bet” flow
- Mobile: no native app; betting happens through the mobile site
- Payments: the most consistently documented model skips e-wallets entirely — punters generate a booking code online, then pay cash in person at the Gaborone outlet; one source separately describes Orange Money support, a detail that conflicts with the retail-cash model and isn’t confirmed
B-Bets is the outlier on this list: a cash-and-code system rather than a wallet-based one. That makes it a poor fit for anyone outside Gaborone, but a genuinely different option for punters who’d rather not load money into an app.
6. BetXplosion — 100% Citizen-Owned Betting in Bontleng
- Licence: BGA-licensed, operated by Direct Wholesale (Pty) Ltd
- Markets: football (Botswana Premier League and English Premier League), with live in-play betting
- Mobile: a mobile betting app is listed by at least one independent reviewer
- Payments: Orange Money, FNB eWallet and MyZaka, per third-party reviews
BetXplosion positions itself as fully citizen-owned, with its flagship Bontleng outlet reported to have created jobs for around 25 people locally. It’s also become a visible sponsor outside betting itself, backing the Botswana Chess Championship.
What About Hollywoodbets, betPawa and Other Cross-Border Brands?
Hollywoodbets and betPawa are both widely used by Botswana punters and show up constantly in general “best of Africa” rankings — including our own South Africa comparison, where Hollywoodbets holds a confirmed local licence. Neither currently appears on the BGA’s register of six named operators, though. betPawa’s own public licence list covers Kenya, Nigeria, Uganda, Zambia, Ghana, Tanzania, Cameroon, DR Congo, Malawi and Rwanda — Botswana isn’t on it. That doesn’t necessarily mean these platforms are unsafe; it means punters using them are relying on a licence issued by a different country’s regulator, not the BGA. Botswana’s Gambling Act, 2012 doesn’t explicitly address this kind of cross-border online betting, which is exactly the grey area the BGA’s June 2026 notice was trying to clarify.
Payment Methods Batswana Bettors Actually Use
Across nearly every BGA-licensed operator on this list, three channels keep coming up: Orange Money Botswana, Mascom’s MyZaka, and FNB eWallet. B-Bets is the exception, built instead around a cash-and-booking-code model at its physical outlet. We’re deliberately not walking through deposit limits or step-by-step cashier instructions here — that level of detail lives on our payments-focused sister site.
Final Verdict: Best Betting Sites in Botswana 2026
For the widest range of sports markets, Betway remains the strongest BGA-licensed pick. Sunbet suits punters who want esports and live in-play tools alongside football. Bet267 and BetXplosion are worth watching as newer, citizen-owned challengers still building out their app offering. PstBet is the practical choice for regional league coverage outside Gaborone, and B-Bets fits punters who’d rather pay cash than load a wallet. Whichever you pick, check it against the full bookmaker directory and confirm its current BGA status before you deposit a single Pula.
Thabo Ndlovu is a passionate sports analyst with extensive knowledge of African football, sports betting trends, and online bookmakers. He covers major leagues, betting tips, match predictions, and responsible betting for sports fans across Africa.
