SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
Golden Race has predicted that revenues for virtual sports will eventually surpass those generated by real events, after referencing the concept’s growing popularity in Italy.
Speaking to Gambling Insider, the firm’s CEO Martin Wachter said that the “numbers in countries like Italy show that virtual sports has become one of the most popular games next to sports betting”.
He added: “Our metrics also show that, in many other countries, the volume and traffic on virtual sports is almost the same size as in real, and way ahead of any other gaming revenue streams.”
Seeking to explain this shift in behaviour, Wachter said: “I don’t think players see virtual sports as a replacement of the real thing, but rather a complementary gaming experience that revolves around their favourite sport – one they can play at any time of the day, every two or three minutes.
“When we look at a soccer game for instance, the player has the opportunity to back his or her favourite team multiple times a day, and not only once a week.”
Wachter was also asked about big trends in virtual sports, prompting him to speak of the prominent role played by the ‘On Demand’ service in Golden Race’s Mobile 2.0 and Desktop 3.0 versions.
“A popular trend at the moment is making virtual games available on demand,” he commented. “Players can start the games right after choosing their bets, rather than waiting for the games to start following a fixed schedule.
“This play method has great value, especially when players play by themselves on their computers or mobile phones. Golden Race released ‘On Demand’ versions of our top played games a while ago and both our clients and players love it!”
In addition to 3D Horse Racing and 3×3 Basket, Golden Race has populated its 2018 roadmap with new game releases dedicated to speedway, motorbikes, American football, dirt track, tennis and basketball, as well as a complete fight league.
When asked how Golden Race decides which sports are developed into virtual games, Wachter said: “To know what kind of sports you should develop next and for it to be successful is a bit like playing lottery: you never know if the players will like it.
“We use market data to understand what real sports are most popular in each region. When deciding whether to bring a sport to virtual or not, it is important to consider whether we can create a virtual format that is not only appealing to players, but also remains comparable to the real sport.”
Meanwhile, Golden Race has also launched the ‘Golden Race World Cup 2018’, a virtual football tournament featuring the 32 qualified teams for Russia. There will be a group phase, round of 16, quarter finals, semi final and final, with penalties to decide the winner for any knockout match ending in a draw.
