With the Metaverse being the talk of the town and both investors and players clamoring to be part of the craze as early as possible, we can’t help but think of all the ways the technology will change the landscape of so many industries.
Sports betting, in particular, has been a staple of the online gambling landscape since the very beginning with online casinos offering just about everything a player could want. The industry saw another huge surge when they were able to take advantage of the mobile market.
Accessible everywhere
Smartphones offer their signature portability to just about every form of entertainment, and online gambling is no different. But what if virtual reality could take the medium a step further? What if with just an online connection, a smartphone, and a VR headset, fans could watch games in a virtual stadium from the comfort of their sofa?
To our speculation, it would change the game forever with developers always looking for sports betting solutions to evolve to suit their customers’ needs and improve the industry.
A more user-specific offering makes for a better experience. Sportbooks offer live-streaming, cash-out features, bonuses, and better security than ever before, but being able to do this all from a mobile device is key. There are certain limitations of a small screen, but could this be about to change?
There wasn’t much competition ????
— talkSPORT (@talkSPORT) December 9, 2021
What happens when they start offering the ability to sit in the stands from thousands of miles away? When the whole world can watch the game from the stands, who would want to watch it on a small phone screen?
This concept has already been posited towards VR being the “new normal” for cinema. So in a matter of years, we believe the same could be said about sports betting. With total control of your betting from your virtual front-row view of the action, you could also save the effort of walking to the marquis to place your wager.
The typical betting establishments could also handle food and beverage requests as they already do, but a system could tell them when and what to cook for specific customers, similar to real-world vendors who already add to the stadium economy.
The whole experience could be streamlined with the use of VR meaning people could have a more immersive experience, remotely.
Industry-wide change
Sports and sports broadcasting as a whole will be changed moving into the future and the leaders in these industries are preparing. The Metacast, which will give sports viewers a real-time 3D viewing platform, aims to make the experience as authentic as possible.
The technology, while still figuring out everything that VR could be, is bridging the gap between reality and digital space and will strive to satisfy all of the senses that one would normally expect to be in reality.
With sight, sound covered, VR could be complete with the addition of taste and smell. But by that point, will we already be sold on the technology? As it stands right now, we’re on the precipice of something big, but when will we take that next big step into the Metaverse, and will it be everything we’ve ever hoped for?
Will we be able to hear the impact of a tackle or feel the same sense of excitement when the digital crowd erupts in cheer? If the answer to those questions is “yes,” this could change sports betting as we know it.
