International online gambling has long been dominated by a handful of massive operators. Bet365 sits near the top of that list and has for years. But 2026 is proving that even the biggest names are not immune to disruption. A new wave of crypto-native platforms is changing what players expect, and ZunaBet has emerged as one of the most talked-about names in that space. Comparing these two platforms shows how much the landscape is shifting and why international players are starting to look beyond the old guard.
Bet365: The Global Giant
Bet365 is one of the largest online gambling companies in the world. Founded in 2000 and headquartered in Stoke-on-Trent, England, it holds licenses in multiple jurisdictions including the UK, Gibraltar, and several other regulated markets. The platform serves millions of active users across dozens of countries and has built its reputation on being a one-stop destination for sports betting and casino gaming.
The sportsbook is where Bet365 built its name. It covers virtually every sport imaginable — football, basketball, tennis, cricket, rugby, horse racing, and dozens of niche markets. Live in-play betting is one of its strongest features, with real-time odds and a streaming service that lets players watch events directly through the platform. For pure sports betting depth, Bet365 has been the industry benchmark for a long time.
The casino side is solid but has always played second fiddle to the sportsbook. Players can access slots, table games, and live dealer rooms from well-known providers. The game count is respectable, running into the hundreds or low thousands depending on the market. It covers the essentials without pushing into the massive library territory that some newer platforms now occupy.
Payments at Bet365 run through traditional methods. Credit and debit cards, bank transfers, PayPal, Skrill, Neteller, and other e-wallets are all supported. Withdrawal times depend on the method and can range from a few hours for e-wallets to several business days for bank transfers. It is a comprehensive payment setup by traditional standards, though it still operates within the constraints of conventional financial infrastructure.
Bet365 offers various promotions and a loyalty approach that varies by market, but it does not run a single unified loyalty program with published tier structures. Rewards tend to come through periodic offers, free bets, and market-specific promotions rather than a consistent system players can track and climb through.
ZunaBet: The Crypto-Native Challenger Gaining Ground
ZunaBet launched in 2026 and took a fundamentally different approach to building an online gambling platform. Owned by Strathvale Group Ltd and licensed in Anjouan, it was created by a team with over 20 years of combined industry experience. But instead of replicating what established operators had already built, they designed ZunaBet as a crypto-first platform from the ground up.
The game library is where ZunaBet immediately separates itself. With 11,294 games from 63 providers, it operates one of the largest catalogs in the crypto gambling space. Pragmatic Play, Evolution, Hacksaw Gaming, Yggdrasil, and BGaming headline the provider list, supported by dozens of other studios. Slots make up the bulk of the offering, but live dealer games and RNG table games are well stocked with enough depth to keep any player busy. For context, this library comfortably exceeds what most traditional operators offer, including many of the major names.
The sportsbook is a fully realized product. Football, basketball, tennis, hockey, and other mainstream sports get complete coverage. Esports receive equal treatment with markets on CS2, Dota 2, League of Legends, and Valorant. Virtual sports and combat sports round things out. ZunaBet was built as a genuine hybrid platform where the sportsbook and casino carry equal weight rather than one being an afterthought to the other.
Payments run entirely on cryptocurrency. Over 20 coins are supported including BTC, ETH, USDT across multiple chains, SOL, DOGE, ADA, XRP, and more. The platform charges no processing fees and handles withdrawals quickly. No bank intermediaries, no multi-day holds, no fiat conversion requirements. For the growing international population of crypto users, this makes ZunaBet feel like a natural extension of how they already manage their money.
New players can claim a welcome bonus package up to $5,000 plus 75 free spins across three deposits. The first deposit matches at 100% up to $2,000 with 25 spins. The second matches at 50% up to $1,500 with 25 spins. The third matches at 100% up to $1,500 with 25 spins. The three-deposit structure is designed to sustain engagement beyond the initial sign-up rather than dumping everything upfront.
ZunaBet provides native apps for iOS, Android, Windows, and MacOS. The platform uses a dark-themed responsive interface with fast loading times, and live chat support runs 24/7.
Loyalty: Scattered Promotions vs Structured Rakeback
Loyalty is an area where the two platforms take noticeably different paths.
Bet365 does not operate a traditional tiered loyalty program that players can openly track. Instead, it delivers value through rotating promotions, free bet offers, accumulator bonuses, and market-specific deals. These can be generous at times, but they are inconsistent and depend on what Bet365 chooses to run at any given moment. Players do not have a clear picture of what their ongoing play earns them in a structured way.
ZunaBet went the opposite direction with a transparent, tiered rakeback system wrapped in a dragon evolution theme. Six tiers — Squire, Warden, Champion, Divine, Knight, and Ultimate — track player progression alongside an evolving dragon mascot called Zuno. Rakeback starts at 1% and scales to 20% at the highest level. Upper tiers unlock additional perks including up to 1,000 free spins, VIP club access, and double wheel spins.
The rakeback model gives players a clear and predictable return on their wagering activity. There is no guessing about whether a promotion will appear next week or what the terms might be. You play, you earn a percentage back, and that percentage grows as you move up. For regular players, this kind of transparency and consistency is worth more than occasional promotional offers that may or may not line up with when you are actually active on the platform.
Traditional Banking vs Crypto Speed
Bet365 offers a wide range of payment options, which is one of its strengths as a global operator. But even with e-wallets in the mix, the payment experience is still built on traditional financial rails. Bank transfers can take days. Card withdrawals involve processing windows. E-wallets are faster but still depend on third-party platforms with their own rules and timelines.
ZunaBet skips all of that. Crypto deposits arrive quickly. Crypto withdrawals move through the blockchain without bank involvement. No fees from the platform. No waiting for a financial institution to approve or release funds. The entire payment cycle is faster, simpler, and cheaper.
For international players in particular, this matters. Cross-border banking can add extra layers of delay and cost. Crypto does not care where you are. A player in Southeast Asia and a player in South America have the same transaction experience on ZunaBet. That kind of consistency is difficult for traditional payment infrastructure to match, no matter how many options a platform adds to its cashier page.
Where International Players Are Looking
Bet365 has earned its position through decades of operation, massive brand recognition, and a sportsbook that remains one of the best in the business. It is not going anywhere, and for players who prefer traditional banking and want the comfort of a long-established brand, it continues to be a strong choice.
But the conversation among international players in 2026 is increasingly about what comes next. ZunaBet offers a game library that rivals or exceeds the biggest operators. Its sportsbook covers traditional and esports markets with genuine depth. Its rakeback loyalty system returns up to 20% directly to players instead of relying on unpredictable promotional cycles. And its crypto-native payment system removes the friction, fees, and delays that international players have dealt with for years.
ZunaBet is not trying to be the next Bet365. It is building something different — a platform designed for players who think in crypto, expect massive content libraries, and want loyalty programs that pay them back in a way they can actually measure. For a new generation of international gamblers, that combination is proving hard to ignore. The momentum behind platforms like ZunaBet suggests that the future of online betting looks very different from its past, and that future is already here.
