Virtual Sports are the product of the latest technological and betting advancements which give you the opportunity to place wagers 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Virtual Sports are shorter, more frequent, electronically generated simulations of the top sports we all know and love. When regular sports are not available, Virtual Sports – run by completely random algorithms – step in and provide a wide range of betting opportunities for you to enjoy.
What is Virtual Sports Betting?
Virtual sports betting is a modern phenomenon where simulated sporting events are streamed 24/7. Today, almost all best betting sites in the UK offer virtual sports betting markets to some extent. In virtual football, for example, a list of fixtures will be displayed together with a fictional league table, with a number of popular betting markets available to bet on (as would be the case on a regular sportsbook). The match is then presented visually, just as with FIFA betting, with the results being shown very soon after. Results in virtual sports are mostly random (using an unbiased random number generator) with the bookie having no control over the result of a fixture.
Due to restrictions in licensing, some bookies are not allowed to use real team names and stadium names, so don’t get alarmed if you see the London Guns taking on Manchester Reds. Compared to real sports, virtual sports tend to have fewer betting types available and lower maximum payouts.
Popular Types of Virtual Sports
We've listed some of the popular virtual sports betting events that you can find on most sportsbooks.
Virtual Football
Virtual football is one of the most popular virtual sports and offered by all bookmakers that we assessed. The sport comes with a widest variety of betting markets to choose from, most of which football fans will already be very familiar with. Betting on virtual football is further enhanced by match commentary and background sounds, and many bookies even offer the chance to bet on different domestic and international competitions.
Virtual Horse Racing
Virtual horse racing is another very popular type of sports to bet on. Bookies offer many different variations of this sport, including flat, jumps, sprint, national hunt, and grand national betting. Common bets include race winner, forecast and tricast betting. Virtual horse racing options are also available on specific events such as the Virtual Grand National betting and the Virtual Kentucky Derby
Virtual Dog Racing (Greyhounds)
In virtual greyhounds betting, players can bet on which dog (out of 6 or 8) will come first in a race around an oval track. Betting on greyhounds is very straightforward, and common bets includes win, place, forecast and tricast markets. Even though outcomes are mostly random, some bookies will also show you past race results so you can see who the favourites are.
Virtual Tennis
Virtual tennis consists of either singles or doubles matches, and can be played on different types of courts just like real tennis. Common virtual tennis betting options include game, set, and match winner markets as well as player to win, correct score, and total points.
Virtual Motorsports
Virtual motorsports is a similar concept to virtual horse and dog racing, in that you are wagering on which car you or bike you think will finish in first place. Odds are usually similar to other racing sports, and common markets include winner, forecast, and tricast. Virtual speedway is another common sport offered by bookies which involves only motorbikes.
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#1
 Betfred
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T&Cs APPLY, 18+ ONLY
Promotional period weekly 00:00 Monday to 23:59 Sunday (UK time). 5% of total stakes awarded as a free bet - min £25, max £200. Min stake £500. On-Demand 'Rush' sports excluded. Full T&Cs Apply. |
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#2
 bet365
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T&Cs APPLY, 18+ ONLY
18+ - Offer for new customers at bet365. Min deposit requirement. Free Bets are paid as Bet Credits and are available for use upon settlement of bets to value of qualifying deposit. Min odds, bet and payment method exclusions apply. Returns exclude Bet Credits stake. Time limits and Full T&Cs apply. BeGambleAware.org #ad |
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#3
 Unibet
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T&Cs APPLY, 18+ ONLY
This promotion runs from 00:01 Saturday - 23:59 Friday from 21st March 2020, and ends on Friday 1st May 2020. Opt-in is required in order to participate in the leaderboard. Every winning bet on Virtual Sports (minimum stake £5, minimum odds 2/5) will give you 1 point on the leaderboard. All Betradar Virtual Sports only are eligible for this leaderboard. Cash Free Spins will be awarded on Football Champions Cup and are valued at 20p a spin. All winnings from free spins are cash and have zero wagering. Leaderboard will be updated daily at 16:00 CEST, and prizes will be awarded the Monday after the end of the promotion by 19:00 CEST. If two players are tied on the leaderboard, the winner will be the player with the highest number of winning bets. If both players still have the same number of winning bets, then the winner will be the player with the highest odds winner. #ad |
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#4
 bwin
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T&Cs APPLY, 18+ ONLY
18+ | New UK players only | Min deposit req. £10 | Certain deposit methods excluded | Place 1 sport bet (3+ selections) | Excl Horse Racing | Min stake £10 | Max stake £20 | Min Odds 2/1 (3.0) | Max FreeBet £20 for football only | FreeBet valid for 7 days | FreeBet stake not returned | Full T&Cs apply. BeGambleAware.org #ad |
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#5
 Sportingbet
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T&Cs APPLY, 18+ ONLY
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#6
BetVictor
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T&Cs APPLY, 18+ ONLY
18+ New customers only. Opt in, bet £10 at odds 2.00+ within 7 days, no cashout. Get 3x £10 Free Bets, set events at odds 2.00+. Plus a £10 Slot Bonus, selected games, wager 20x to withdraw max £250. Plus 100 Free Spins. 100 Free Spins have no wagering. Bonuses and Spins expire in 7 days. Card payments only. Please Gamble Responsibly. Full T&Cs apply. BeGambleAware.org #ad |
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#7
 William Hill
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T&Cs APPLY, 18+ ONLY
New customers using Promo code H30 only, Min £10/€10 stake, min odds 1/2, free bets paid as 2 x £15/€15, free bets credited after settlement of first qualifying bet, free bets will expire 30 days after the qualifying bet is placed, payment method/player/country restrictions apply. See full terms below. Full T&Cs apply. BeGambleAware.org #ad |
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#8
 Ladbrokes
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T&Cs APPLY, 18+ ONLY
18+ New UK+IRE Customers only. Certain deposit methods & bet types excl. Min first 5 bet within 14 days of account reg at min odds 1/2 = 4x 5 free bets. Free bets valid for 7 days, stake not returned. No cashout, restrictions + Full T&Cs apply. BeGambleAware.org #ad |
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#9
 Coral Sports
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T&Cs APPLY, 18+ ONLY
18+ New UK+ ROI Customers only. Deposit & Bet min £5 as first bet at minimum odds 1/2 to qualify for 1x £20 Free Bet. Certain deposit methods and bet types excluded. Free bet valid for 7 days, stake not returned. Restrictions apply. Full T&Cs apply. BeGambleAware.org #ad |
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#10
 BoyleSports
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T&Cs APPLY, 18+ ONLY
*New UK customers (Excluding NI) only. Mobile only. £20 in FREE Bets (FB) as £10 in sports bets & a £10 casino bonus (CB). Min stake £10. Min odds Evs. FB applied on 1st settlement of any qualifying bet. FB 7 day expiry. 1 FB offer per customer, household & IP address only. Payment restrictions. 14 days to accept £10 CB, then active for 3 days. CB 5x wagering & max redeemable £100. Game restrictions apply. Cashed out/Free Bets won’t apply. 30 days to qualify. 18+. Full T&Cs apply. BeGambleAware.org #ad |
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#11
 Betfair
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T&Cs APPLY, 18+ ONLY
New customer offer. Place a min £10 bet on the Sportsbook on odds of min 1/2 (1.5), get £30 in Free Bets. Rewards valid for 30 days. SMS verification required. Only deposits via cards or Apple Pay will qualify. T&Cs apply. Please Gamble Responsibly.Full T&Cs apply. BeGambleAware.org #ad |
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#12
Paddy Power
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T&Cs APPLY, 18+ ONLY
New Customer Offer. Place your FIRST bet on any Sportsbook market and if it loses we will refund your stake in CASH. Max refund for this offer is £10. Only deposits made using cards will qualify for this promotion. T&Cs apply. Full T&Cs apply. BeGambleAware.org #ad |
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Best Virtual Sports Betting Sites Ranked & Reviewed
#1: Betfred Virtual Sports Betting
Betfred’s dedicated Virtual World platform is probably the most comprehensive one we’ve seen in this whole list. With virtual football, tennis, horse racing, greyhounds, motor racing, speedway, darts, cycling, and bingo as well as the option to bet Rush Go and On-Demand, there really is a virtual sport for everyone at any time of day or night at Betfred. The bookie also offers specific virtual sports promotions, including a Bet £10 Get £5 offer for customers accessing any On-Demand virtual sports, or the chance to get up to £200 in free bets with Fred’s Free Bet Club.
#2: bet365 Virtual Sports Betting
As one of the top bookies in the UK, it should come as no surprise that bet365 holds one of the largest virtual sports portfolios to be found anywhere. The betting site offers virtual horse racing, soccer, cricket, American football, motor racing, speedway, trotting, cycling, darts and tennis. bet365 virtual events typically take place every 2-3 minutes, and new customers can claim bet365’s sign-up offer of Bet £10 Get £50.
#3: Unibet Virtual Sports Betting
With Unibet’s recently launched virtual sports platform, you can bet on virtual football, virtual World Cup, virtual Champions Cup, virtual basketball, virtual tennis, virtual horse racing, and virtual greyhounds. Unibet is one of the few top bookies to actually display a football league table and gives punters the chance to bet on several outright markets, including season winner, top 5 finisher, and bottom 3 finisher, as well as dozens of other match day markets. Unibet also offer weekly virtual sports tournaments where players collect points every time they win bets. The more points you have, the more cash you can win, and whoever finishes on top will receive a mouth-watering £3000 reward.
#4: bwin Virtual Sports Betting
At bwin, you can bet on virtual football, tennis, greyhounds, horse racing, trotting, speedway and velodrome. The virtual football platform that bwin offers really is a step above the rest, though, as punters have the opportunity to choose from a wide range of competitions to bet on, including popular domestic leagues from around the world as well as the World Cup, the Champions League and the Europa League. All virtual events take place every few minutes at bwin, with the bookie’s virtual interface being very user-friendly.
#5: Sportingbet Virtual Sports Betting
Sportingbet has a very appealing virtual sports interface and offers its players virtual football, races, greyhounds, horses, tennis, speedway, velodrome and trotting betting options, as well as instant football. For virtual football, Sportingbet provides detailed match information including league tables, previous results, head to head information, and other team news which almost makes you feel like you’re betting on the real thing. The bookie also offers lots of betting markets and displays matches in fantastic quality.
#6: Coral Virtual Sports Betting
Another highly reputable betting site, Coral gives its players a variety of virtual sports options to bet on, including virtual horse racing, virtual greyhounds, virtual football, virtual tennis, virtual motorsports, virtual speedway, virtual cycling, and virtual darts. At Coral, you can bet on matches up to 5 hours in advance. With events in each sport taking place every few minutes, that’s more betting opportunities than we can count!
#7: BetVictor Virtual Sports Betting
BetVictor provides virtual horse racing, virtual football, virtual dog racing, and virtual basketball for its users. All sports are streamed with great quality and include other fun touches like match commentary and crowd sound effects, which make for a top virtual sports betting experience. Each event also has a timer to let you know when exactly different matches are to take place. BetVictor’s Bet £10 Get £40 + 100 free spins welcome offer can also be used on virtual sports, which makes this bookie a great place to try out virtual sports betting for the first time.
#8: William Hill Virtual Sports Betting
William Hill’s Virtual World lets you wager on virtual horse racing (flat and jumps), virtual greyhounds (flat and jumps), football and ‘other’ sports (which at the time of writing included motorsports). All matches and races take place every 4 minutes at William Hill and are displayed in great quality, with the most popular betting markets available to play on. New virtual sports players can benefit from William Hill’s Bet £10 Get £30 sign up offer by entering the code P30 when registering an account.
New customers using Promo Code P30 only, min £10/€10 stake, min odds 1/2, free bets paid as 2 x £15/€15 (30 days expiry), free bet/payment method/player/country restrictions apply. By entering the Promo code in the box above you agree to the full terms and conditions of this promotion.
#9: BoyleSports Virtual Sports Betting
BoyleSports’ portfolio consists of virtual horse racing (flat, national hunt, grand national), football, greyhounds, motor racing, and speedway. Compared to other bookies, the streaming services at BoyleSports feel a little bit inferior, but overall, there is a good choice of popular markets to bet on with matches taking place every few minutes.
#10: Ladbrokes Virtual Sports Betting
Ladbrokes’ virtual sports offering consists of virtual horse racing (flat, jumps, and grand national), virtual football (regular and football rush), and virtual motorsports. Ladbrokes offer a decent stream with events taking place every few minutes. For virtual football, you can bet on full time result, correct score, total number of goals, double chance, and over/under 2.5 goals. For all virtual events you can bet up to 6 hours in advance.
#11: Betfair Virtual Sports Betting
Betfair offers a wide range of virtual sports betting opportunities, including horse racing (flat, jumps, and sprint), club football, world cup, greyhounds, and motor racing. All events take place every couple of minutes and are streamed in stunning high definition. At Betfair, you can choose to wager on virtual sports up to 25 minutes in advance. The bookmaker offers popular markets and allows you to view past match results.
#12: Paddy Power Virtual Sports Betting
Just like its partner in crime (Betfair), Paddy Power gives users the chance to bet on virtual horse racing (flat, jumps, and sprint), virtual world cup (football), virtual super league, virtual greyhounds, and virtual motorsports. You can only bet on matches up to 20 minutes in advance, however, and compared to other bookies, Paddy Power offers far less betting markets, including only three for virtual football (full time result, total goals and correct score).
Why Bet on Virtual Sports?
When compared to betting on real sports, virtual sports betting has a number of advantages for players to enjoy. Because virtual sports are computer simulations, bookies can decide how long virtual sports matches are and how often they take place. As a result of this, matches tend to be shorter (lasting less than a minute) and more frequent, with very short intervals separating each fixture, and you can bet on virtual sports 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. These endless betting opportunities are perfect for off-peak times of the day or season when there are very few sports taking place.
Additionally, since the outcome of a virtual sports match is essentially random, you do not need any prior sporting knowledge to bet on virtual sports, and there is no chance of any bias or corruption in a match which can effect the final score – something which unfortunately tends to occur in real sports. This means that if you are new to the world of sports, you don’t need to spend a long time analysing past results, head-to-head information, team news, current form, and all the other important factors that usually have an influence on real sports.
Virtual Sports Betting Tips
Whilst it is difficult to create a formidable virtual sports betting strategy because of the unpredictable nature of these markets, we have compiled a list of virtual sports tips that could help increase your chances of winning your bets.
Select Your Virtual Sport Wisely
Even though the outcome of a virtual sports match is decided by a random algorithm and could go either way, you can still make some choices to increase your chances of getting the correct result. One such option is to wager on a virtual sport which has a smaller amount of competitors as statistically, you are more likely to predict the winner in a 6-dog greyhound race, for example, compared to a 10-runner horse race. Naturally, the less competitors there are, the lower the odds will be; however, this will increase your chances of winning greatly.
Bet Small Amounts And Don’t Chase Losses
Virtual sports betting markets are volatile, and with such a high level of randomness, players are always going to face some losses. We suggest betting with small amounts – while this will result in lower profits if you win, it is also a good way of avoiding heavy losses if you start to lose in these unpredictable sports. Another important betting mistake to avoid is to not to chase your losses by wagering larger amounts if you do start to lose. If you are finding it difficult to win in virtual sports, the best thing to do is stop or try a different sport. Betting small amounts and not chasing your losses is a great way of keeping you in control of your bets.
Back Favourites Often, But Not Always
Although virtual sports are random, there is still some weight added to the favourites in a match. Betting on the favourite therefore, whilst not a surefire way to win a bet, could over time give you a payout. It could also be useful to bet on favourites each way as even if they do not come out on top, you can still get a return from your stake.
Look For Virtual Sports Betting Promotions
Many bookies will at one point or another offer virtual sports betting promotions and bonuses to entice more players to try them out. As is the case with all other forms of betting, we definitely encourage you to look around for such promotions, as they can greatly enhance your bet and increase your overall potential payouts.
Remember That Virtual Sports Are Not Real
One thing that we cannot stress enough is that virtual sports are not real, and the outcomes of virtual sports matches do not reflect real life in any way. If in a real football match, one team would likely destroy another team, in a virtual sports match the results could very easily be reversed, and it is not uncommon to see top ‘real-life’ teams getting relegated in a virtual sports league. When betting on virtual sports, do not let your real sports knowledge influence your decisions.
Popular Virtual Sports Betting Markets
Many of the markets available for virtual sports betting are the same as those of real sports. Some of the most popular virtual sports betting markets include:
Virtual Sports Betting FAQs
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Virtual sports software calculates all potential outcomes of a match or race and then a random number generator (RNG) is used to randomly select a result.
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Virtual sports betting can be enjoyed by both beginner and expert punters of all ages due to their short duration and simplicity.
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Given the short duration of each event, Cash Out is not available on virtual sports.
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No, you are not able to combine virtual sports bets with other sportsbook markets.
ThePuntersPage Final Say
Virtual sports are the product of technological advancements in the betting industry and provide players with endless fast and simple betting opportunities. With so many different sports to choose from and lots of popular betting markets, it’s no surprise that virtual sports are growing in popularity. While these sports will never be as exciting as the real thing, for times when real sports are unavailable, virtual sports are definitely a substitute we would recommend to anyone.
Adam is avid sports writer (5 years and counting) who has been betting for as long as he's been legally able to. As an Arsenal fan, he knows a thing or two about the importance of patience (and heartbreak).
