Betting And eSport
Today, e-Sports is a fast-growing sector that now allows betting. If this practice appeared not long ago, you should know that it is possible to place bets on the major video game competitions. Only a handful of sites are open to this discipline, which should develop considerably in the years to come, with the entry of new sites.
However, e-Sports is not yet established in practice. As for e-Sports betting, it does not yet have its own operator approved by the ARJEL (Autorité de Régulation des Jeux en Ligne). But this should change soon as many countries with specific legislation on online gambling have authorised betting on eSports, such as Belgium, Spain, Italy and the UK.
Betting on NBA 2K
NBA 2K is a video game license developed by Visual Concepts and published by 2K Sports, a subsidiary of Take-Two Interactive. Every year since 1999, a new edition of this basketball game has been released. Over the seasons, many of the world’s top basketball stars have appeared on the game’s cover, including Michael Jordan, Allen Iverson, Shaquille O’Neal, and Kobe Bryant. NBA 2K is the most realistic basketball simulation on the market, and is even considered by virtual sports fans to be one of the most successful video game simulations of any sport. The latest release, NBA 2K20, is available on PC, Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch.
Since 2018, the NBA has been running a major eSports competition in collaboration with Take-Two Interactive, which takes place on the game from 2K Sports. The NBA 2K League was first announced in February 2017, and during the inaugural season in 2018, 17 of the NBA’s 30 teams were present in this eSport league, representing their colours. The Knicks were the winning team in this first edition.
The league is very similar to the NBA league. Every player who owns the game on Ps4 or Xbox One and who is 18 years old or older can qualify for the draft and hope to be selected by a professional team.
Once the season starts, matches are held every week and count towards the regular season or side tournaments. The games are played on Friday or Saturday, and the results of the side tournaments can be used to break a tie in the league standings. At the end of the season, the top 8 teams advance to the playoffs, with $600,000 at stake. The winners take home $300,000 and are named NBA2KL champions.
This professional eSports competition is well attended, and all games are broadcast live on streaming platforms. For fans who would like to bet on a victory of their favourite team, online betting sites allow to place bets during NBA 2K League games. A good opportunity to spice up this already exciting competition.
Betting on Rocket League
Rocket League is a sports video game released in 2015 for PC and PlayStation 4, in 2016 for Mac and Xbox One and in 2017 for Nintendo switch.
The title developed by the studio Psyonix is a mix between a football and car game, with games taking place in one-on-one or team play. The matches take place on a field, the player is at the wheel of a car, and must manage to pilot it perfectly to succeed in getting a ball into the goal. Manoeuvres are carried out both on the ground and in the air.
Rocket League has been a huge success with the public, and in 2019 the 60 million player mark was passed. The game’s development team continues to support the title and says that the game has many more years to go.
The game is easily enjoyed by the public, and the most talented drivers are able to perform sumptuous actions, so it is logical that Rocket League has made its place in the world of eSports. Numerous competitions have been created, the most famous being the RLCS.
The Rocket League Championship Series is a league directly funded by Psyonix, which is now owned by Epic Games. Since 2016 it has been an opportunity for the world’s best drivers to compete in thrilling matches to win the grand prize. The top 10 teams from each continent compete for a place in the final, which acts as the Rocket League World Cup.
At the ninth season finale in early 2020, a prize of $82,500 was shared between the four finalists. The winner took home $37,500 and the top two went straight to Season 10.