James Maxwell
Founder & Editor · Last reviewed 2026-04-24
The Star Sports App
The Star Sports mobile app is available on iOS and Android — App Store listing ID 1444845627 under "Star Sports – Sports Betting", published by Star Racing Ltd. It is not the polished app racing punters have got used to at Bet365 or Paddy Power.
App Store ratings (current)
- iOS: 3.2 out of 5 from roughly 29 ratings (Football Ground Guide review, December 2025)
- Google Play: approximately 3.1 out of 5
Review counts are in the tens rather than the thousands — a direct reflection of Star Sports' smaller user base compared to the mass-market corporates. For context, Bet365's iOS app sits around 4.7 stars with hundreds of thousands of reviews; Paddy Power's iOS app is at 4.7 with 209,000 reviews. The quality gap is genuine and visible.
What the app does
- Biometric login (Face ID on iOS, fingerprint on Android)
- In-play betting on live events including racing
- Live streaming of UK and Irish horse racing and greyhound racing — requires a funded account and typically a £1 qualifying bet on the race you want to watch
- Cash Out on racing and in-play markets (partial Cash Out reported as available by some reviewers but disputed by others)
- Build-a-Bet for football (the 10% winnings boost on four-selection-plus winners)
- Star Boosts carousel on the homepage showing enhanced prices
- Racecard navigation with standard markets (win, place, each-way, forecast, tricast)
What the app doesn't do well
- App speed and reliability. Recurring negative review themes include lag, trader-approval delays on bets, occasional crashes. This is a consistent user-experience complaint.
- Integrated form and stats. Unlike Bet365 (trainer/jockey 14-day strike-rate panel), William Hill (Pro Racecard) or Coral (Stay The Distance notes), the Star Sports app does not embed racing statistics inside the racecard. Form data is delivered via the editorial blog — the Starters Orders morning market report — rather than inside the betting flow.
- Racing bet builder. There is no same-race multi / racing bet builder product. The football Build-a-Bet does not extend to horse racing.
- Modern payment methods. No PayPal, no Apple Pay, no Google Pay on iOS/Android desktop, no Skrill. Debit card and bank transfer only.
How it compares to rival racing apps
| Feature | Star Sports | Bet365 | Paddy Power |
|---|---|---|---|
| iOS rating | 3.2 | 4.7 | 4.7 |
| Integrated form stats | No | Yes | Yes (Timeform) |
| Racing bet builder | No | Bet Builder | Same Race Multi |
| Streaming | £1 bet/race | Free with funded balance | Free with funded balance |
| Apple Pay | No | Yes | Yes |
On every standard measure, the mass-market rivals' apps outperform Star Sports'. The honest positioning: Star Sports' strength is the phone trader desk and the on-course pitches, not the app. If app-based betting is the core of your racing day, Bet365 or Paddy Power are the stronger daily-use choices.
See our full Star Sports review for the complete product context.
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