Australia is famous for being a nation that loves its sport. But despite being the most popular game on the planet, soccer has never achieved mainstream attention, and certainly falls far behind national passions like Aussie Rules football, cricket and rugby.
As a result, video games relating to soccer like FIFA, Football Manager and Pro Evolution Soccer are not the massive sellers in Australia that they are in the rest of the world. But one soccer game is capturing the imaginations of Australian players like nothing before, possibly because it involves another big Aussie passion – placing bets. The game is called Virtual Football Pro – let’s find out more about it.
A blend of sporting action and the luck of pokies
Australians spend about $25 billion on gambling every year – a huge amount for a nation with a population of only a little more than 25 million. Most of that is spent on pokies, or slot games as they are known in the rest of the world, and the second most popular form of gambling is sports betting.
Today, an increasing proportion of this gambling activity takes place over the world wide web and online casino games bring more variety than ever before for Australian punters. Online casinos don’t have the same space restrictions as land-based ones, so they can afford to take a chance to try out new games that might or might not prove popular. That’s where Virtual Football Pro comes in, a casino game based purely on luck that looks for all the world like a real football game.
Basics of playing Virtual Football Pro
Developed by UK studio 1×2 gaming, Virtual Football Pro brings all the excitement of soccer gambling without the 90 minutes of tedium that can so often see a game end without a single goal being scored. When you look at it that way, you can see why it appeals so much to a nation that is big on gambling, but less enthused by the game of soccer.
Put simply, Virtual Football Pro runs virtual tournaments and leagues involving real teams, but with each round of games taking only about three minutes. Players can bet on as many results as they like and don’t have to sit through a whole game to find out if they won.
After three-minute, betting time is concluded and the results of that set of fixtures are shown. Winnings are paid out and the next round of fixtures is shown on the screen. There are 16 different types of bets that can be placed on specific match ups, including who will win, the total number of goals, halftime score, and so on. Players can also place outright bets on how the tournament or season will conclude, who will be leading at the mid-season point, who will wind up at the foot of the table, and more.
An awesome selection of leagues
One of the most impressive things about Virtual Football Pro is the incredible choice of leagues. As well as all the famous European leagues like the EPL, Bundesliga and La Liga, there are African leagues such as the Ghana Premier League, Asian leagues including the Chinese Super League and the Japan League and, crucially for our case, the Australian League.
Just as impressive, the developers at 1×2 take pride in constantly keeping the teams up to date. When you fully explore the game and see how many leagues and teams there are, you start to realize what an achievement that is. In fact, there are a total of 162 leagues to play in 146 different countries.
Virtual sport – pros and cons
The great advantage of virtual soccer, and indeed other virtual sport games, is that you can get through an entire season or tournament in an hour. There is always a game to bet on, and there is none of the waiting around that there is in real life.
That same fact can also be virtual sport’s downside. It is important not to get too immersed or carried away, as you can end up staying for the season, betting on every game and burning your bankroll if things don’t go well. Always go into your game with a plan and stick to your budget.
That’s really no different to the advice that applies to any casino game, and therein lies an important point to remember. Virtual Football Pro mimics the real thing, but it is just another casino game. When you bet on real soccer, there are factors like the confidence and fitness of players to consider, and the weather and playing conditions. It is easy to falsely factor these considerations into your thinking, but ultimately, the results are only down to the random number generator at the heart of the game.
