Sports betting has come a long way since the days before the Internet was all-pervasive. In those days, you would enjoy a bet on the horses or perhaps a soccer match, rarely some other sports.
Everything happened on the premises of a high street bookmaker and at one point, they had a somewhat seedy reputation.
Now it is all changed. The advance of technology in recent times has not just facilitated the dawn of online betting, but with it a change in not just how we bet, but what we bet on.
Now we can bet on a myriad of sports, with an abundance of markets available to bet on for each. You can bet in-play and even live stream events to your PC and your smartphone and tablet.
However, a relatively recent innovation is the world of sports betting on entirely fictitious events. This is the world of virtual sports.
Bet365 Sport offers one of the most innovative and exciting virtual sports betting services you can find online today. But what exactly are virtual sports? How do they work and how could they potentially be a source of cash for you, if you are lucky enough?
For all the answers to these questions and more, take a look at our quick Q&A section below before you head on over to Bet365 Sport to try out their exciting range of virtual sports betting services.
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What are virtual sports?
Virtual sports are actually software developed to replicate the events within a sports event, within certain parameters. The software actually comprises of two distinct parts, but which are linked together.
The first is the actual simulation software. This offers a representation of the sport (graphically as well as statistically). The second is the betting console, which allows punters to place bets on the virtual sport event.
How virtual sports events work
All the competitors, whether they are individual players, teams, drivers, racehorses etc. are generated within the software. They do not exist in the real world (although they may be based on real-life teams for ease of recognition for the user). In addition, any historical data, such as horses form, is also generated for the purposes of the simulation.
The reason the software does this is to create differences between the individuals or teams competing, and thus from this, the software can calculate realistic betting odds for the event and markets offered.
Essentially, it is a form of handicapping. This can strengthen one opponent randomly or weaken others to create a mix of options and a variety of odds for the punter.
Once the betting market is created by the software, the odds for each of the offered markets are shown. Punters can then click on the odds and place bets on them as they would any other bet at Bet365 Sports.
After around 90 seconds, the betting period end. Then the simulation part of the software kicks in showing a computer-generated representation of the sporting event.
After this is completed (which takes about 1-2 minutes) a summary of the event result is displayed, together with a list of all the winning bets that were offered at the start. A short time later, a new virtual sports event will start and the process begins again with the betting phase.
What virtual sports does Bet365 offer?
Bet365 Sports offers a wide range of virtual sports. They are certainly one of the leading bookmakers when it comes to this form of betting in the UK at present. The full list of virtual sports they offer is outlined below.
Virtual Horse Racing
Bet365 offers Virtual Horse Racing from three different courses:
- Britannia Way
- Festival Downs
- Victoria Park
This includes flat racing and racing over the jumps. The starting times of each of these is staggered so that you can tune in to a race at any point and have something to bet on.
Virtual Greyhounds
You can bet on races on the flat and over jumps at two different Virtual Greyhound tracks: Goldenhill Park and Hillside Park.
Virtual Motors
There is a choice of two different virtual motorsports to bet on at Bet365 Sport. The Mitchell Circuit offers car racing, while Sterling Stadium offers Speedway racing.
Virtual Football
You can place bets on a number of markets across three different Virtual Football competitions:
- The Premiership (which features teams based on teams in the UK)
- The Superleague (which is a mix of fictional club teams from the UK, Europe and around the world)
- The World Cup (which is matches between national teams)
Virtual Cycling
Races for Virtual Cycling occur in the Franklin Velodrome and take place every three minutes.
Virtual Tennis
You can place a number of different bets on the Virtual Tennis events coming from the grass court Matthews Open, where matches are contested over a single game.
Virtual Trotting
A new addition to the Bet365 Sport range of services is Virtual Trotting, which features races from Etruria Gardens.
Of course, the betting markets available for each of these events do differ.
The ‘race’ type of events tend to offer win and each-way bets. The ‘match’ type of events, such as football and tennis, tend to offer betting on markets based on events in the game, such as the number of goals or points scored, or match result.
Are virtual sports and esports the same?
You may have heard of the rise of esports betting in recent times. Many people confuse esports betting with virtual sports, but in truth, they are very different.
As we have learned, virtual sports are simulated sports events entirely run by computer software.
In contrast, esports are competitive tournaments played by the best players in the world. In esports, players or teams play against each other using a computer game as the medium.
How to bet on virtual sports at Bet365
Betting on virtual sports at Bet365 could not be simpler. Just click on the Virtual Sports tab at the foot of the page and then select from the virtual sports available at the top of the page.
When the console changes to this sport, you will join the game either as it is preparing for the next event when the betting is available, or while the simulation part is being run.
If you join when the betting is available, you simply click on the odds of the bet you wish to make to add it to your bet slip. Then enter the stake and click place a bet.
Remember, you have limited time to place your bets on virtual sports events. So it is best to ensure you get your bets on expediently.
Are virtual sports fair to the bettor?
One of the most common reasons punters say they don’t want to bet on virtual sports is the belief that they can be designed or manipulated by the programmers to ensure that the bookmaker wins an unfair amount of times compared to real world betting.
Of course, software programmers could skew the results in this way. But to do so would be counter-productive. That’s because any type of betting offered by a UK-registered betting site like Bet365 Sport has to be fair to the customer and it is tested to ensure that it is.
Otherwise, it will not be granted a certificate and the company will not be allowed to offer the service on its site.
Furthermore, if a game is designed to be unfair, punters will quickly cotton on to this. The bookmaker’s reputation would suffer a huge blow in the eyes of its customers. As such, betting sites actively work to ensure their software offers punters the fairest possible service as well as exciting virtual sports betting.
Are there any tips you can offer for Bet365’s virtual sports service?
Unfortunately, there is no way you can offer tips for virtual sports. This is because the software is based on random number generators. And of course, all the competitors and teams are all entirely fictitious. They are not real-life teams or individuals.
However, using common sense when betting on these events is a good rule of thumb. Backing shorter priced selections and favorites will likely turn up more winners for you than backing outsiders at longer odds.
That said, this software does have a significant random element to it. So longer odds wins are possible and do happen relatively frequently. It is up to you to be the lucky punter who backs that market at the right time to land a win!
Virtual sport is an ideal service for punters who like to bet small but bet often on a number of events in a short amount of time. It is also good for those who want the results of those bets delivered quickly.
