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About Football 1x2
Virtual betting is commonplace on most gambling sites nowadays with Horse and Greyhound Racing betting appearing again and again. Virtual football betting is not so widespread, but the origins of the game are now apparent. Football 1x2 Ltd are a company who "created the original online virtual football betting game way back in 2002" and fancied mixing up the variety somewhat. Their concept has been licensed out to a number of mainstream bookmakers such as Eurobet and Stan James so you may already be familiar with the game that is also known as Football Frenzy or Kick Off. Football 1x2 is also the football game division of Chase Racing, who have been operating a number of betting outlets since 1982. These include stalls at a number of race courses throughout the south of England under the banner of Bet Odd or Even.
Virtual Football Betting
Football Frenzy
Football 1x2 offers a variety of virtual football betting markets but if your not familiar with the concept then here is how it works. Basically you have the opportunity to place money on a team you think will win a virtual match. Not only can you choose a team to win you can also take the draw if you feel inclined to do so. Once you have made your selection, the match goes ahead and you win money/lose your stake depending on the result of a match. In essence it is the same as betting on real matches but with virtual teams. Now, you may be excused for thinking that it is more of a lottery than an educated guess as the teams are not real. Well, while it is more unpredictable than real football, the same trends still apply.
You are able to check the league table to give you an idea of who should win or if you feel as though you would like to go into more depth then this option is available to you too. In the build up to a round of matches you can place your cursor over any given team and it will display the likelihood of them scoring a certain amount of goals. If they are likely to score more than the opposition then technically they should win. We emphasise the word technically however.
All the teams from the English Premier League exist in the main Football Frenzy mode but leagues from top countries such as France, Germany and Italy are just a few other options that are playable too. Each week's worth of matches lasts for 90 seconds. This is the window you have in which to place your bets before a the next round of fixtures appears and the previous week's results calculated. It then continues in this time pattern until the season comes to a close meaning an entire season lasts one hour. At the beginning of a new season or during it at any time, you are also able to bet on who you think will win the league during that season.
Champions League
It's not just domestic leagues that feature throughout this site though. The Champions League is also on show here and in this option, more detail is added. This virtual betting game is based on the actual Champions League draw with groups A-H featuring. During each round of games you are able to bet on the results from each match. This time however you can go in more detail by betting on the exact scoreline rather than just the outright win or draw options. To add to this you can even place bets on the first goalscorer for each match, which adds an exciting and entertaining twist to the concept. There is also a featured match that is played out between betting rounds and here we get to see the match played out in front of us with a basic image of a pitch and some players with a clock indicating elapsed time during the match. Notifications of as and when goals are scored and by whom are displayed too.
World Cup and European Championships Virtual Football
If you do not find your niche in the club football market then perhaps International football will be more to your liking. There are two competitions to choose from in this area with South Africa 2010 and Euro 2008 currently featuring. While the European Championship is out of date, it still retains the traditional format associated with the competition and in turn gives you the opportunity to right a footballing wrong by betting on England to win it. The squads are also in keeping with the time of the event, with the old warhorse Gary Neville always featuring the shortest first goalscorer odds.
It begins with betting on the qualifying stages for the event with 10 matches being selected for each round of matches. Again you can pick the draw or an individual win for each of these matches. Once the qualifying stage is over however it goes into the competition proper starting with the group stages. You can then place bets on every match included in the tournament right up to the final. Featured matches give you an slightly more in-depth look at a selected game and first goalscorer and outright wins count at this advanced stage.
The World Cup option does not feature qualifiers, but still offers the entire tournament's fixtures from group stage to final. Each match will again offer first goalscoring odds and outright winners markets so you can enjoy the tournament before it actually takes place.
All matches featured throughout the site (apart from Football Frenzy) offer three different types of bets. Your standard 1x2 gives odds on home win, away win and draw. You also have the option of an Asian Handicap which offer odds with the draw option being taken out while +/- 2.5 relates to the amount of goals your selection will score. All bets are displayed in decimal format too but the option to have the view in fractional form is not available.
Other Games
It's not all about the Virtual Football here at Football 1x2 however. There is the option of Instant Win Games where you have the chance to play for some quick cash. Darts 180 is a virtual darts game where you have to stake a desired amount and then you get a set amount of winnings back depending on your score. The biggest prize comes if you hit 180 whereby you get 1000x your deposit back. Championship Rally Hi Lo puts you in the driving seat of a car and you have to bet on whether or not the dial on your speedometer will land on a higher or lower number than on the previous go. You can also earn shuffles along the way which mixes up your gauge in a bid to get it in a position that is easier to predict.
Treasure Tomb requires you to guide an Indiana Jones-like hero to the end of a tomb without succumbing to the various dangers. The odds of you being struck down depend on what colour tile you choose to walk across. The lower risk results in lower money whilst a high money choice has a more likely chance of you being killed by the tomb's threats. Penalty Shootout is another intriguing (yet out of date) game where you pick the results of five penalties. First of all you pick a side from one of the ones available which include some of the biggest clubs in Europe and then a list of five of their players appears.
You need to say whether or not they will score (the names are unofficial, Pro Evo-Style) and then if you are right you will pick up the winnings dependant upon what the odds were on your choice. The twist comes when you are required to score the penalty yourself by choosing one of three directions if you bet on the player to score. If you bet on them to miss you need to save their effort by choosing the same three directions. Other games include Sap Tim Pun, a game based on Mahjong, Race The Ace, a card based racer and Touchdown, which is an NFL style game. All the games offered throughout the site offers Play For Fun option so you can get a feel of the game before you place any cash on it. This includes all of the Virtual Football titles.
Promotions
There is one promotion that runs through the Football 1x2 website and this is the sign up bonus. If you deposit £10 initially then you are eligible for a £10 bonus once you have spent 3x the value of your initial transaction. If you deposit £50 you could receive a £20 bonus when you spend 6x your deposit value. £50.00 will be awarded if you deposit £500.000 and then spend 14x this amount. The final bonus could reach £100.00 if you deposit £1,000 or more and the spend 16x this amount.
Football 1x2 is an innovative and different way to gamble your cash. The fact that you can 'try before you buy' essentially is a major plus for a game based betting site as it allows users to fully understand what they are doing before placing their money down. Whilst the unpredictable nature can become frustrating, the tools to make more educated guess are there. The Instant Win Games keep this site fresh and prove that it is not simply a one trick pony. Those who sign up to this site may find they will be killing many an hour thanks to the addictive and entertaining nature of the products on offer.
Tick Box
Safe: Yes
Demos: Yes
24/7 Support: No
Download Required: No
Mobile Gambling: No
Promotions: Yes
Live Betting: N/A
Disclaimer: All deals and promotions listed were correct at the time of this review, and are subject to change. For current promotions, please visit the website as listed above. Please feel free to use the comments section to post details of current promotions including, where applicable, valid dates.