Football is the world’s most popular sport, as more than 240 million people throughout the world play the game on a consistent basis, and more than a billion people watch matches in television or in person. Because of this we have seen the beautiful game expanded to all different forms of pop culture, including social media, video games, movies, and now even the online casino world. While casino games based on football are not necessarily new, the adoption to the online betting world is a bit more recent, and players are finding themselves inundated with a selection of games that mix in lucrative prizes with some very familiar players.
Gaming software developers all throughout the world have come up with intriguing ways to integrate football into casino games, with almost all of the titles being slot machines, although we have also seen a variety of parlor games that have challenged punters with either making the big save or shooting the game winning penalty. As technology has advanced in the betting sector we are starting to see games integrating more advanced features related to football while also bringing us our favorite players from our favorite clubs.
Instances of these advanced games include:
Playtech’s World Football Stars slot machine, which brings with it several of the world’s top players representing their country to the reels as they do battle on the reels. Included players include Brazil’s Ronaldo, Spain’s Carles Puyol, England’s David Beckham, and Germany’s Jurgen Klinsmann. The game also manages to mix in free spins, a pick’em feature, and a gamble feature, which allows you to potentially double your winnings if you’re feeling lucky.
A similar game to World Football Stars, Playtech’s FootballLegends game features many similar features and soccer stars, although you lack the ability to select your squads to duke it out. Still, the game’s 15 paylines and presentation are top notch, giving players the chance to witness legends such as Pele, Bobby Charlton, and Franz Beckenbauer create a little bit of magic on the turf.
Another popular slot put out by Playtech is the FootballRules slot, which manages to put players on the pitch. While this game doesn’t feature any of FIFA’s legendary players, the game does an excellent job of putting you right in the action and giving you the chance to win some big cash prizes. The lone feature in this game is free spins, which is a bit of a letdown, though.
Other companies have also gotten in on the football slot craze as well, as Microgaming put out a very popular game that mixes in 243 ways to win, stacked wilds, cascading wins, free spins, and a variety of symbols that convey headers, penalty saves, bicycle kicks, cleats, shirts, and more. Moving across the pond to the American betting markets, developers such as RTG have put out games like Football Frenzy, which allows players to get in on the action complete with yellow cards, pints of beer, team scarves, and many other symbols.
In addition to the games that have been developed, many online betting sites have tailored specific offers to football fans, giving them the chance to place a wager on the match and then move on to football related slots and parlor games without ever leaving the site. Depending on where you reside sites that offer services like this include Bet3655, Bovada, BetVictor, Ladbrokes, and many more.
Moving ahead it is likely that punters on the go will also be able to get their hands on the pitch, as many developers are simultaneously developing mobile slots with their desktop releases. These games expand the horizons for football fans, as they would be able to play these slots while at intermission time at the stadium or at the pub when the game is out of hand.
As we gear up for the UEFA Euro 2016 tournament that is set to run from June 10th to July 16th next year in France, it is likely that we will see a variety of new slots that we will see a bevy of new releases coming from major players in the European betting market, as least if prior releases for major international tournaments are any indication.
