There are a handful of decent online betting sites in Ethiopia but there are also some poor ones, and in between, well there are start-ups with ambitions. One such newbie on the market is Shegerbet.com, which looks to be just starting out operations, like Qwickbirr and Best Bet.

Shegerbet, despite using the English version, is still not fully synchronised and the local language is infused throughout the platform.

The site seems to cater exclusively on football, with a substantial bet-market taking in leagues across the globe – both elite and obscure.

There seems to be a 350 000 birr jackpot, advertised on a banner on the home landing page, but since this is in the local language it is not clear how this jackpot works.

There must be a jackpot, otherwise this banner would not be there but there is no tab throughout the landing pages to indicate a jackpot-card. Clicking on the graphic indicating the jackpot should take a punter to a separate link page, but this does not happen.

The main landing page menu is made up of a sportsbook, a link called ‘my bets’, a tab named ‘profile’ and a help icon.

The menu can be found on the right-hand top side of the main landing page. Just underneath these tabs are the bet slip and a sentence which states the minimum bet for the site is 10 birr.

Then there is a disclaimer that 15% of all winnings over 1000 birr will be taxed. This disclaimer, especially on the main landing page, and so prominently shown, is rare to find across many betting sites in Africa, but at least it tells the punter the tax law from the onset.

The left-hand flank shows all the football leagues across the globe that shegerbet covers and this is comprehensive.

The first 10 leagues are the elite ones, with the EPL, La Liga, Serie A, Lige 1 and Bundesliga showing prominently.

The newness of the site can be seen in the fact that there are approximately a dozen current bets.

As the platform grows this number should grow exponentially.

The site is so new that all the links under the main menu directory on the landing page are not yet in use. Clicking on the Help tab at the top right of the page reveals a pop-up that says the information will be put up ‘soon’.

The same applies to the profile and my bets links, with all information and details expected to be live in due course.

The site looks active as current bets can be made on current matches – for example bets on the EPL games on the 23 February are available. There are three banking options as displayed on the main landing page (near the bottom), including CBE Birr and Hello Cash.

There are no terms and conditions sections, nor FAQ’s. There is also no ‘how to play’ sections, nor how to deposit or withdraw.

There is only a disclaimer at the bottom of main landing page.

The site is live but is so much in its beginning stage that it is hard to review fairly, but maybe the developers could be in the beta testing phase. More work could have gone into the site before it went live, and Ethiopian bettors will be checking on the progress, as options are limited in the country and any new platform will be welcomed.