Virtual gaming is one of the most exciting innovations in the online sports betting world. These virtual sports actually work like video games where the software plays out the matches, events, contests, or races. Many virtual gaming competitions are available on bookies today. You can either choose to participate in a Virtual Football League, Virtual Horse Racing, Dog Racing, Basketball, Tennis, and others, depending on what the sportsbook offers.
Virtual sports gaming brings in a blend of sports and casino gaming. You only have to wager while the software plays out the game. Advanced algorithms determine the outcomes of the games. However, the strength of the team or player in the game is determined by how strong they are in real life sporting games.
Year after year, virtual gaming has continued to improve. In this article, we will discuss what to expect from the virtual gaming market in 2021. However, we will start with some factors that will affect the market in 2021.
The effect of COVID-19
The year 2020 was a big one for online gaming in general. Virtual sports was one of the sectors of online gaming that benefited greatly. It started with the outbreak of COVID-19. Then, the governments of many countries, including the UK, had to shut down activities. Nations went into complete lockdown to control the spread of the disease.
Many people had to resort to online games like virtual sports to kill boredom while at home. Numerous gaming news sites like FULLSYNC reported how the number of user registration on iGaming sites increased tremendously. This spike in the number of gamers has set a good foundation for the coming year.
Another factor was the suspension of real-life sporting events. This left sports lovers with no other choice than turning to virtual games. The possibility of also making extra money from virtual games during the lockdown attracted more people.
![VR Sports Betting showing a man wearing a VR headset playing casino games in VR - Virtual Gaming](https://fullsync.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/VR-Betting-1024x426.jpg)
Before 2020
Before the spike in 2020, the virtual sports market has been experiencing growth. A lot of virtual sports companies around the world have been recording a steady increase in the number of players. An example is Inspired Entertainment, which recorded a total venue of $153.4m in 2019, a 9% increase from $140.7m in 2018. The company also said it recorded an 11% increase in the number of operators offering their virtual sports.
What to expect from Virtual Gaming in 2021
Even though gambling activities have slowed down after some restrictions were lifted, virtual sports have gained some new dedicated punters. Thus, much more is expected from the market to meet the needs of the numerous punters. In 2021, here are some things we expect to see in virtual gaming:
- Increase in the number of virtual games betting markets
At the moment, the betting markets for virtual sports are still considerably smaller than real sporting events. Many sportsbooks will likely make more betting markets available to provide more options for new and old players. - Addition of new virtual sports
Currently, we have only a few virtual sports like Football, Basketball, Horse Racing, Darts, and Cricket. In 2021, we expect to see more virtual sports like Golf and Rugby available at online gambling sites. This is due to the rise of equipment for realistic gameplay like golf simulators. - Improvement of already available virtual sports
We expect to see more companies release virtual games with additional options such as competitions instead of only random games. This will open the opportunity for more betting options.
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