Online Betting History: 30 Years Since the First Internet Bet

January 17, 2026 marked exactly 30 years since the first bet was accepted online, a milestone widely regarded as the starting point of the online betting industry. The date traces back to January 17, 1996, when bookmaker InterTops took its first wager via the internet.

^{Pictured: Jukka Honkavaara}

The historic bet was placed by Finnish customer Jukka Honkavaara, who staked $50 on Tottenham Hotspur to beat Hereford United in an FA Cup match. Tottenham won 5–1, making the wager a winner. However, due to extremely short odds of 1.04, the bettor’s net profit amounted to just $2.

At the time, InterTops had already been operating in the betting market for more than a decade. Founded in 1983, the company initially accepted bets by telephone and through postal services.

The launch of online betting marked a technological breakthrough and set the direction for the industry’s future development.

In the years that followed, InterTops expanded its product offering, launching an online casino in 1998 and a poker platform in 2003. Following a rebrand in 2021, the company continued operations under the name EveryGame.

Three decades on, online betting has grown into a global industry with millions of users worldwide, while the events of January 1996 are widely recognised as its historical starting point.