Recently, there has been a strong development and demand for virtual sports. This is particularly common in the racing world, which is perhaps one of the easiest of all sports to implement in a virtual environment. While football, cricket and basketball have virtual equivalents, they have numerous aspects that players need to keep in mind.

The races, on the other hand, are relatively simple for the players, as the idea behind them is one: who will win the race. Whether it is horse racing, greyhound racing or cycling, the premise is still the same and there are not many variations that can be considered when it comes to a virtual version of real racing.

What virtual competitions are

Virtual competitions have no human intervention at all, they have game software generated with results determined on the basis of probabilities. Games use random number generators to determine results, but they are based on algorithms made using real-world data. In general, this means that games reproduce exactly the results of the real world, therefore the favorite will still win most often, but there will still be surprises in which the outsider wins, just like in real races.

How to bet

If you've never really practiced in the world of virtual sports, or even any sport other than the most popular, then you might be slightly confused about how to bet. Don't be! Honestly, betting on virtual racing works in much the same way as betting on real racing.

The first thing you need to do is look at the various contestants who participate in the event you are betting on. For the sake of clarity, we will look at horse racing here, though the same applies to all other races. There is a list of horses entering the race, just like in real racing. You can view each one by color and number.

Some sites will even allow you to look at the value of the races over the past 3 months, which will give you a glimpse of the sporting shape of the horse. Then you just have to click on the horse you want to bet on and it will be added to your slip. Then you have to decide whether you want a one-way or just a direct winning single and bet.

In every virtual racing sport you can bet on, you can place winning bets, Each-way bets, Forecast and Tricast bets, with some websites also giving you odds on inverted Forecast and Tricast bets or even a combination of Forecast and Tricast, If you want to try more complex bets you will need to add more players to your bet slip.

Since most bookmakers want to simplify things when it comes to virtual betting, they will not allow you to bet more than three horses in a race. Again, all you have to do is add your pick to your bet slip and then choose the type of bet you want to make, whether it is Forecast, Tricast or another variation.

Types of virtual horse racing

When it comes to virtual horse racing, the options available to players are many. Examples of races you can bet on are flat and jump racing, although sprint racing is also popular. On top of that, you'll also be able to bet on two-wheeler racing at some bookmakers, so it's worth considering for options.

Let's lookbriefly at the different types of horse racing you can bet on:

Flat racing - This is probably the easiest to explain type of horse racing, given that these are races that are run on a flat field and therefore do not involve anything complicated. As far as virtual racing is concerned, they are slightly different from the real races, in that the length of the race is not really that important. In fact, most bookmakers don't tell you how long the race is before it takes place. You will see the length of the race before it starts, but it is unlikely that you will change your decision on what to bet on then. What may make you think is the number of participants that will vary with each race.
Jump racing - In the real world of horse racing, there are many different types of horse racing that you can watch. Whether it is jump racing, steeple-chase or racing with very young horses or mares, horse racing enthusiasts have a great choice. There is usually no difference between the different types of racing jumps you can bet on when it comes to virtual racing. Instead, there will be a general race jump course in most cases, and you won't even know how many jumps there are. Don't go into this too much, though.
Sprint racing - Sprint racing is a type of flat racing that is usually performed over 5 or 6 high-speed furlongs. In the world of virtual racing, these types of races are the same and therefore finish much faster than other types of racing. This means that they can be launched in rapid succession.
Harness racing - Harness racing is popular in North America, but is also well known in France and parts of Europe. These include horses pulling a two-wheeler on a race track. This obviously adds a different dimension to the race and makes it more interesting from a betting standpoint, though it works in the same way as normal flat runs.

Virtual Grand National

Let's just mention the virtual Grand National, which is a virtual racing version of the biggest jump race. Created by Inspired, it promises a full terrain of 40 horses running along Aintree's most famous race track. Licensing and associating with the Jockey Club means that this race is based on the real one and involves the actual leaps that are known around the world.

The virtual Grand National reflects the real one, meaning that horses can fall when jumping a fence, knock down their rider and even stand up. This is a throbbing version of one of the best jump racing in the sport. There are even comments and crowds in the stands applauding the contestants.

Virtual greyhound racing

The greyhound racing world works in much the same way as horse racing. You pick a greyhound and you bet the same way you would with a horse, so you don't have to worry much in that sense.

Obviously the key difference is that greyhound racing is much faster than horse racing. You can place similar bets, including winnings, place, forecast, trick, etc.

Virtual greyhound racing does not have the same race types as horseback racing, with all races occurring on an oval track similar to the real equivalent. However, you can bet on flat or jump greyhound racing. As with actual races, although distances may vary, in virtual racing you will also find sprint racing.
Many people prefer greyhound racing to horse racing, as races in the virtual world happen at the same pace as in the real world.

Advantages and disadvantages of virtual racing

There are pros and cons to both types of racing we have talked about so far, the main difference with them compared to the other types of races is that both types include animals. For this reason, virtual horse and greyhound racing is actually preferable to the same type of racing in real life, since no animal can be harmed.

You can demand virtual greyhounds and horses to run in as many races as you want as often as you want and they will never get tired. You do not have to worry about the animals being well cared for before racing or fearing that the selection you are betting on will be withdrawn from the race.

Minuses come in the form of people not being able to do the kind of research that they would do for real racing. For example, you cannot get advice from someone who works on horseback tracks, or consider the fact that certain horses do not do well in bad weather.

Another drawback is that the speed at which races occur means that people who have a problem with impulse control will have to work hard to resist the temptation to bet regularly and often. Virtual competitions can be held every hour of every day of the year, so they can be a problem for some people. Virtual gaming is effectively used by betting companies as a bridge between sports and casino games, so always make sure that you only bet money that you can afford to lose.

Can horses or dogs fall in virtual racing?

Given that races run over fences just like in the world of virtual ones, it would be natural to question whether they could fall. The answer is slightly complicated, which means it's possible, but doesn't mean it's really happening. Instead, most horses and dogs will tend to finish the race.

The reason is that the addition of a horse or dog to fall during the race adds an extra dimension to the programming of the algorithm, which dictates the outcome of the race, and most bookmakers and game creators do not want to do it. The good news is that if the horses or dogs fall, they will not be injured!

Is it possible to have a draw in a virtual race?

Another question people will probably want to answer is whether the race can end in a draw. Again, the answer is technically "yes," but that doesn't mean it will actually happen. Ultimately, this would add unnecessary complication to an event that, by its very nature, can be as simple as possible.
The nature of virtual sports, which is dictated by a random number generator and a computer algorithm, is such that things are done in a binary way. There is no need for a draw or a horse to hurt or get rid of before racing, so why should game makers add this to the algorithm?

Other types of virtual racing

There are other types of virtual racing in addition to those involving greyhounds and horses. If it's a popular race, then you can be sure that somewhere a bookmaker will offer it as one of the things you can bet on in their virtual offerings.

Virtual Cycling - Based on the type of indoor cycling you may have watched during the Olympics, you will see virtual cyclists competing in the velodrome. Here you can find the same winning bets, Each-Way, Forecast and Tricast, as with virtual horse racing and virtual greyhound racing.
Virtual speedway - Speedway is a sport that is extremely popular with some groups of people but completely unpopular with others. It involves people riding motorcycles around dirt tracks, sliding and sending dust and dirt into the air. Everything is virtual, of course, but it is based on real sports and again offers the same types of bets.
Virtual Motor Sports - Different bookmakers offer different forms of motor sports, but the theory is the same everywhere. For example, you will see Formula 1 virtual cars and you can bet on which one will win. Unlike true Formula 1, the races don't last for hours and instead take about a minute and a half.

How do virtual competitions work and how realistic are they?

Now that you know the different types of races you can bet on and how to bet, it's worth looking into the technical side of virtual racing. There are many different companies that produce virtual racing, for example, as well as other technical issues that you may want to answer.

How virtual odds are created

Let's start with one of the most influential aspects of virtual racing: odds. After all, in virtual horse racing you can place bets on the name of the horse, its colors and the odds that are given. The longer the odds are, the less chance there is for a competitor to win and vice versa for shorter odds.

Although obviously much more complicated than this, we can offer a relatively simple explanation of how an odd is given to a particular horse when the result of a race is determined by a random number generator. Imagine that what you bet is close to the lottery. There are 20 possible numbers and you have to choose one.
The names of the competitors with short odds will be written in several different "balls". However, competitors with longer odds will have fewer balls and then the number of that competitor will be drawn. However, this does not mean that there is no chance of this happening.
Clearly, this is not really the case, but it is a worthy analogy. The odds are created at random by a computer algorithm and the random number generator then selects the winner.

Virtual games typically have a lower return on player margins than casino games. However, this is calculated on an individual bet basis, while you may get better odds of rotating the table against an individual virtual horse race bet, it is also true that you can bet every 20 seconds at a casino game, so overall losses can be higher with casino games, although RTP is better. It all depends on what you want for a game, if value matters- play casino games on the table, but if you want something that is more realistic and looks like a real sport, choose a virtual game.

Game software is based on real-world events, so the odds of a virtual race are, for example, similar to those you would get in a real race, which is part of the question.

How good is the streaming?

Another question many people will ask for guidance is how good the quality of the stream is. The answer to this will undoubtedly vary from person to person, with the speed and reliability of your own internet connection being one of the deciding factors. If you have super fast internet then you will no doubt find that the streams you watch will be flawless.
In this sense, virtual sports are similar to the live streaming of real sports, with the only difference being that virtual sports are hosted by a server and not be transmitted from a physical location and problems that may arise with it. Even people with slow internet speeds will find that most virtual sports are broadcast with decent quality because they use little bandwidth.

In terms of the actual quality of the competition, most bookmakers offer high-definition video, which means the quality is excellent. No wonder, given that virtual sports manufacturers now have incredible technology.

Who creates the virtual competitions?

Some of the larger bookmakers have their own departments that can create virtual racing events that people can bet on. It is important to note that they will still have to follow the rules around the random number generator that decide the result and will not be able to interfere in any way with the outcome of the event. All games are independently regulated and tested, no matter who creates them.

There are third-party betting platforms like SBtech and BetConstruct that offer bookmakers full gaming platforms to join if they wish. There are virtual competitions within the various packages, which means that bookmakers who receive content provided by an external company will be able to offer virtual competitions depending on the package they pay for.

In addition, the largest software companies in the industry create packages that bookmakers can buy from them. One such example is Playtech, which is one of the leading providers of virtual sports for the betting industry. Likewise, Betradar has a virtual gaming solution suite that is paid for by over 180 bookmakers around the world. One of the best vendors is Inspired, whose graphics quality is exceptional.

It is obviously up to different bookmakers to decide which company they want to work with in order to secure their virtual sports offering, considering price and quality as a deciding factor. The best in the business use the latest motion capture technology and 3D graphics to create virtual competitions that are as close to realistic as possible.

There are countless different virtual game makers on the market, all offering something different for bookmakers and other vendors who would like to take advantage of their products. While learning more about them and what they offer will not help you win your bets in racing, it will undoubtedly help you decide which bookmakers to bet with. We recommend you to try Betway and 10Bet.