Examining Bovada’s Live Numbers Games and Virtual Sports

Have you ever found yourself in the mood to wager but unable to find any sports or events you’re interested in? Well, no matter the date or time of day, Bovada’s online sportsbook has a full slate of contests and numbers games to keep you active and entertained. But while the various lottery-like numbers-based activities are worth your attention, it’s the selection of virtual sports and related wagers that are currently blowing my mind!

Maybe I’m old and out of touch these days, but I was shocked to learn how many betting opportunities are available to Bovada customers in the “Virtual Sports” category. If you’ve ever played a typical sports-based video game, you’re probably familiar with the concept of simulating a contest. Without any human intervention, the software plays out each moment of a race or competition based on advanced algorithms and pure chance to create a unique result each time.

On Bovada’s sports betting website, you’ll find virtual sports being played around the clock. At first glance, it almost looks like the real thing! You can watch the digital games play out live via stream, while a virtual commentary team calls the action, creating a surreal wagering experience.

I must say, I’m quickly becoming a massive fan. Instead of waiting for a league’s season to open or for an upcoming game to start, I can just hop onto whichever video game-like simulation is coming up next. Also, it’s worth noting that the coverage of these contests is competitive with the real thing. For example, any given basketball game has markets with moneyline odds, totals lines, and margin of victory bets for both halftime and the full contest.

My favorite virtual sports, thus far, are the “American Basketball League” games, camel racing, and “England League” soccer.

In this article, I want to look at all of the live games and virtual sports available on Bovada. With seven different sports, two unique numbers games, and the roulette-like “Spin and Win,” users of the online sportsbook always have plenty of new wagers from which to choose. The following betting opportunities take place around the clock, with new contests starting or finishing every minute or so.

Live Numbers Game

Bovada’s main numbers game is listed as a category of its own and can be played at either “turbo” or “standard” speed. A round of the game is completed once three numbers have been retrieved from a field of 75.

Players may wager on each individual ball as well as the result of the entire three-ball draw. There are a variety of different ways to bet on the outcomes of each round, ranging from precise predictions for a single value to broad groups of numbers. Then, you have betting odds on whether a ball will be an even or odd figure, or whether the sum of all three will cover a given totals line.

In the turbo version of the game, an entire round takes two minutes to complete. There are 40 seconds between the selection of each number. At standard speed, a new ball is drawn every two minutes, giving players more time to browse through the various betting options and submit their picks.

Here are some of the bets you can make during any given round of the live numbers game:

• Single Ball
  • 1st Draw +7043
  • 2nd Draw +6948
  • 3rd Draw +6852
• Single Row (Five Numbers)
  • 1st Draw +1302
  • 2nd Draw +1283
  • 3rd Draw +1264

• Single Column (15 Numbers)
  • 1st Draw +376
  • 2nd Draw +370
  • 3rd Draw +363
• Three Rows Block
  • 1st Draw +376
  • 2nd Draw +370
  • 3rd Draw +363

• Five Row Block
  • 1st Draw +186
  • 2nd Draw +182
  • 3rd Draw +178

• Next Ball – High/Low (Odds Depend on the Previous Draw)
• Next Ball – Odd or Even (Odds Depend on the Previous Draw)
• Next Ball – Over/Under
• Next Ball Combo – Odd/Even and Over/Under

Spin and Win

Spin and Win is Bovada’s online virtual roulette game. Like the traditional casino game, there are 36 red and black sections of the wheel, 18 apiece. There is also a single green “0” in play, making the game more similar to European roulette than the American version with its second green pocket.

A new game begins every two minutes. Between rounds, the player has a variety of bets from which to choose, though far fewer than you’ll see at a standard roulette wheel in a casino. The following are your options for wagering and their gambling odds:

• Dozen – You choose from one of three ranges of 12 numbers: 1-12, 13-24, or 25-36.
  • Each of these bets pays out at 2 to 1, or +200.
• Number – Just like in roulette, you can play a single number for the upcoming spin, ranging between 1 and 36.
  • The payout for predicting the next number accurately is 35 to 1, or +3500.
• Color – If you want to bet a broader range of numbers, you can pick one of the three possible colors. There are 18 red sections, 18 black, and one green.
  • Red +100
  • Black +100
  • Green +3500
• Even/Odd – Similar to the color bet, you can choose to play an entire range of numbers based on whether they’re an even or odd. These wagers pay out at even odds, meaning the slim house advantage is based exclusively on the one additional green column.
  • Even +100
  • Odd +100

Color-Color

There’s a second draw-based numbers game called “Color-Color,” in which the player places bets based on the numbers and colors of a range of 49 balls. There are 16 red, 16 yellow, 16 blue, and one grey ball for the number 49.

When it comes to wagering on this game, you have a litany of options. Every two minutes begins another draw, at which six colored balls are virtually drawn at random. Whichever color makes up the majority of the draw is considered the “winning color.”

Bovada gives players a variety of different ways to bet on the results of each draw, some of which can generate enormous payouts if you’re lucky. The following wagers are your options during the two minutes between draws:

• Number of Colors – This bet involves picking how many red, blue, or yellow balls will be drawn next.
  • 0 (10 to 1)
  • Two or more (1.43 to 1)
  • Three or more (3 to 1)
  • Four or more (10 to 1)
  • Five or more (75 to 1)
  • Six (1000 to 1)
• Winning Color – Whichever color makes up the majority of the draw is considered the “Winning Color.” If none of the colors has a majority, the round is ruled a “Draw.”
  • Red +260
  • Blue +260
  • Yellow +260
  • Draw +280
• Matched Numbers – If you prefer to wager on the numbers that are drawn rather than the colors, that’s an option as well. Bovada allows you to pick up to 10 balls, though the fewer you select, the higher the payout. Once you’ve selected your numbers, you can choose to bet on the number of matches between 1 and 5.

However, keep in mind that the following numbers are based on playing the same number of balls you’re matching. So, going five for five pays out those extraordinary odds. If you choose 10 numbers and try to match five, the odds are drastically reduced.

• 1 Matched (7 to 1)
• 2 Matched (65 to 1)
• 3 Matched (650 to 1)
• 4 Matched (7000 to 1)
• 5 Matched (100000 to 1)

• Anaconda – Another option is to pick a string of numbers between six and 20 selections long. If the sequence of numbers drawn matches the order of the chain you submitted, you win. The payout is based on the number of matches.

• Bet Zero – You can also try to wager on the numbers that won’t be drawn. The more you select, the greater the payouts if none of your picks are part of the draw.
  • Pick 1 (1.1 to 1)
  • Pick 2 (1.25 to 1)
  • Pick 3 (1.4 to 1)
  • Pick 4 (1.6 to 1)
  • Pick 5 (1.85 to 1)
  • Pick 6 (2.1 to 1)
  • Pick 7 (2.4 to 1)
  • Pick 8 (2.75 to 1)
  • Pick 9 (3.2 to 1)
  • Pick 10 (3.7 to 1)
  • Pick 15 (8.5 to 1)
  • Pick 20 (24 to 1)

Virtual Sports Betting

While the various live numbers games are sure to be plenty of fun, it’s the virtual sports about which I find myself most excited.

Basketball

At the time of writing, I’ve watched 15 consecutive basketball games in the “American Basketball League” though, they admittedly don’t take very long to resolve. A new game starts every four minutes.

Each contest shows the simulated players competing in a handful of plays, while announcers call the action. The visual effects are surprisingly well done and feature a wide variety of plays, from deep threes to the occasional “Vince Carter” elbow dunk. After showing a few highlights, Bovada posts the halftime and final scores.

What’s brilliant is that there’s a real handicapping element to betting on these virtual basketball games. The website has created an entire league, with official standings and stats that appear to impact the results.

Here are the bets you’ll find available for your typical game:

• Half Time Winner
• Winner
• Over / Under 187.5 (may change depending on the game)
• Over / Under 189.5 (may change depending on the game)
• Half Time Winning Margin
• Team 1 Over/Under 92.5 (will change depending on team)
• Team 2 Over/Under 95.5 (will change depending on team)
• Winning Margin

The virtual basketball league schedules eight games per day, with each individual day lasting roughly four minutes. Over the course of an hour, you can watch and bet on entire seasons, tracking the win/loss records to improve your picks as the competition progresses.

Soccer

Bovada’s virtual soccer league, also known as the “England League,” is organized similarly to their basketball betting, only with a wider range of possible bets. There are also more teams. A new day starts every four minutes, at which point a slate of 10 new matches begin.

You can click on the “statistics” tab to see the current standings, including wins, losses, and draws each teams’ numbers of goals scored and surrendered, and their points for the season. These figures appear to impact the simulated contest, as the winning squads are favored in various betting markets, as you’d expect with a real sport.

Before I move on to the selection of betting markets, I just have to give Bovada props (no pun intended) for these virtual sports simulations. The soccer matches might be the most realistic viewing experience they offer. The gameplay looks fairly close to FIFA, and the announcing is surprisingly entertaining and well-written. Check here the advantages and disadvantages of Virtual soccer betting.

Each day of games brings about a new set of highlights, which are interesting enough for me to have actually contacted Bovada’s help desk to get some answers regarding how they’ve created this experience. So far, I haven’t gotten a response. There were times when I’d catch myself enjoying a showdown between two teams before I remembered it’s just a simulation. Wagering on virtual sports makes me feel like we’re living in a Black Mirror episode.

Here are the betting markets you’ll find for each virtual soccer match:

• Winner
• Correct Score – You can predict anything from a 0-0 draw to a 6-0 victory for either side and every possible score in between. When you get into the high-scoring shutouts, payouts are routinely set at +10000 and higher.
• Double Chance – This bet lets you select two of the three potential outcomes. So, you can pick Team 1 to win and a draw; you only lose if Team 2 is victorious. You can also take Team 2 and a draw, or Teams 1 and 2, making it so that you only lose in the case of a draw.
• Goal/No Goal – GG (or Goal Goal) bets are a prediction that both teams will score a goal in the contest. NG (or No Goal) is a prediction that both teams will not score. However, that doesn’t mean you need a 0-0 scoreline to win. You only need one of the teams to fail to score any goals.
• Total Goals – Bovada will let you choose anywhere between 0 and 6 total goals scored.
• Asian Handicap – You may apply an Asian handicap of your choosing to either side of a match. The sportsbook gives you options ranging from (+ and -) 0.25 to 2.00, with bets at each quarter interval (0.50, 0.75, 1.00, etc.) for both clubs. By choosing a spread of +1.75, for example, you’re really making two separate spread bets, one in which your team is getting 1.5 points and another in which they’re receiving 2.
• Over/Under Goal Totals – Bovada offers several goal totals for each match. You can choose lines ranging from 1.5 to 4.5, and choose which one you’d like to bet the over or under against.
• 1X2 Over/Under – These wagers have you pick the winner (or draw) as well as whether the total number of goals will exceed a given line. Bovada’s sportsbook lets you set the line at either 1.5 or 2.5. So, if you bet Team 1 Under 1.5, you’re picking that side to win without more than one goal being scored in the match.
• Home and Away Over/Unders – Oddsmakers also supply you with a broad range of totals that can be applied to either the home or away team. The lines start at 0.5 and end at 3.5, with options available at every half-point interval in-between.

Horse Racing

Every two minutes, a new virtual horse race begins on Bovada’s sportsbook. These races alternate between six and eight-horse fields, with a full selection of fictional animals with randomly created names. A virtual broadcaster calls the action.

All of the traditional qualities of a racebook are present. You can pick any of the horses to win, place, or show at a range of different odds that suggest each of these runners has unique strengths, weaknesses, and overall talent, despite being digital manifestations of the real thing.

Along with the three wagers I’ve already mentioned, these horse race betting classics are also available:

• Exacta – You bet on the first and second-place finishers in the exact order in which they cross the finish line. You can create your exacta slip manually, or Bovada has a list of different combinations you may choose.
• Trifecta – The trifecta is the same as the exacta, only you make picks for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place (win, place, show). Once again, Bovada provides a variety of combinations available with a simple click, or you can design your trifecta yourself.
• Over/Under – There’s also a wager based on how each of the virtual horses is numbered. When the race is decided, the value assigned to the winner is compared to a totals line , set at 4.5 in an eight-horse field, which determines if the bet went over or under. So, if horse number-six finishes first, they’ve covered the 4.5 totals line, meaning the over bets win.
• Even/Odd – Another way of betting on the runners’ assigned numbers is to make an even/odd wager. All you’re doing is predicting whether the winner will carry an even or odd number. The odds change based on the horses in the field.

Greyhounds

The difference in betting virtual greyhounds versus virtual horses is negligible. Everything is the exact same, including the available bets, except for the graphics that appear on the screen as the simulation plays itself out. I’m pretty sure that even the announcer is the same, with his mild British accent and moderate enthusiasm. For what it’s worth, the dogs appear to be moving considerably faster if that’s the sort of thing you’d base your decision on.

Supercars

As was the case with the greyhounds, the supercar races also follow the same model as virtual horse racing. Bovada has essentially just applied different skins to the same program and altered the sound effects in the case of the supercars and the announcer. Instead of the British commentator from the greyhounds and horses, you get an American announcer who feels more natural on the NASCAR-style broadcast.

You can find a new race starting every two minutes in the Bovada sportsbook. Like before, these contests alternate between fields of six and eight competitors, respectively. This change in participants alters the betting lines, so if you prefer one or the other, you’ll be waiting four minutes between races.

Speedway

The speedway option gives players the opportunity to wager on the outcomes of virtual dirt bike races. Out of all the simulated sports, these contests look the most realistic. I watched two full heats before I could be 100% certain I was looking at computerized characters and not real people.

Like the other virtual races, the speedway events start every two minutes, giving you time to glance over the field and submit your picks quickly. The types of wagers available are mostly the same. You can bet the winner (but no “place” or “show”), an exacta or trifecta, over/under, and even/odd.

The one significant difference between these contests and the others is that the field is made up of only four racers , and that number does not change or alternate. Obviously, this makes it easier to guess the winner correctly but also limits the size of the payouts.

Camels

Even if you aren’t a fan of virtual sports or racebook betting in general, do yourself a favor and go watch Bovada’s absolutely hysterical simulated camel races! I honestly cannot believe this is a real thing, and I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to wager on anything else. Whoever designed these races is my hero.

Let me paint a picture for you. The camel races take place within miles of sand dunes stretching in every direction. The animals are running on a track that appears to be running parallel to a major highway. On the other side of the camel-track is more desert, where a fleet of white SUVs is driving alongside the action.

As the camels compete, white SUVs on either side of the race are continually honking for no apparent reason. Amidst the honking, you’re treated to the occasional camel grunt. It’s an absurd, if not alien, sound in its own right. While all of this is going on, a heavily-accented commentator is calling the action in a way that I can’t go into detail about without causing offense.

The whole spectacle is so ridiculous and entertaining, I can’t believe I didn’t know about this sooner. Here I am wasting my time wagering on real sports like football and baseball, while these outrageous virtual beasts are blasting down some far-away desert highway to the joyous honks of people driving by! And you can actually bet on it! Why would anybody ever wager on anything besides virtual camel races?

Also, I’m going to need to do some research on real-life camel races. The jockeys are sitting so far back on these animals, it looks like they’re about fall off and get trampled.

Anyway, the camel races are run in heats of six and eight runners, respectively. A new contest starts every two minutes, with the size of the field alternating between two sizes. Once again, a bettor can bet on any of the camels to win, place, or show, or pick exactas, trifectas, over/under, or even/odd betting markets.

The Future Is Now

So, there you have it. We are officially living in some kind of futuristic bizarro world! To be honest, I always thought it would be the actors and actresses who would be replaced by virtual counterparts first. I wasn’t expecting it to be the athletes. Sure, virtual sports aren’t a threat to the real deal yet, but this form of betting is still relatively young! If they can already program that insane camel race, who knows what Bovada will be letting us wager on in a decade’s time!

However, in the future, when there’s information available about every virtual player, and it’s possible to collect data and make educated predictions, this form of online betting is going to explode. In the meantime, Bovada is providing a fascinating and hilarious option for bettors searching for something to wager on in between real games and events.

Between their live numbers games and an array of virtual sports, there’s something for everyone. You can find me at the virtual camel races. I’ll be the one doubled over and clutching his stomach, laughing hysterically.