Second-placed Arsenal and ninth-placed Manchester United will square up at the Emirates Stadium on Wednesday in the first big match of the Premier League festive schedule.

The action-packed month of December will see each Premier League team play six matches within the next 28 days, with Champions League, Europa, Conference League and Carabao Cup matches in between.

The Gunners face the Red Devils knowing there’s no room for error in their chase of Liverpool who are nine points clear at the top of the table. United lost on each of their last three visits to Arsenal but will bank on the new Manager bounce. United Manager, Ruben Amorim, led Sporting Lisbon to a penalty shootout win over Arsenal at the Emirates in the Europa League round of 16 encounter two seasons ago.

During his press conference, Amorim charged his team to be brave against the Gunners. “Arsenal is the best team I’ve faced by far, they are in a different moment. But every game is a big test now because there are few days to train and we have to manage the minutes of every player. But I want my players to be brave to play this game. We need to have the ball and dominate moments of the game,” he said. United will be without Lisandro Martinez and Kobbie Mainoo due to suspension. Tune in to catch the action as it unfolds live on DStv channel 203 and GOtv channel 66 at 9:15 pm on Wednesday.

In the other big match of the day, Liverpool will aim to continue their impressive run when they visit Saint James’ Park to take on Newcastle in one of the 8:30 pm matches on Wednesday. The match will also be available on DStv and GOtv.  Newcastle lost 2-0 at home to West Ham last Monday and will be desperate to prevent a consecutive home defeat in front of the Geordies.

Other matches on Wednesday include Southampton vs Chelsea, Aston Villa vs Brentford, Manchester City vs Nottingham Forest, and Everton vs Wolverhampton Wanderers. On Thursday, Fulham will host Brighton while Bournemouth welcome Tottenham Hotspurs to the Vitality Stadium.

Customers can enjoy all matches this festive period by reconnecting their DStv or GOtv decoders. Simply dial *288# to renew or upgrade your subscription. You can also take advantage of the GOtv Golden Window and upgrade to Supa Plus package for N13,900 instead of N15,700. You can also download the MyGOtv app for a better self-service experience.

Today’s sports betting services are way more advanced than several years ago. Modern punters can wager on all kinds of sports from the comfort of their homes. Aside from the standard alternatives, however, players can also bet on virtual sports and even take part in the simulated reality league (SRL).

Unlike Virtual Sports, which has been around for years, SRL is relatively new, meaning that not a lot of people know about it. Although it has its specifics, a lot of punters agree that it can be better than v-sports, especially virtual football. There are many reasons for it, so let’s dive in and learn more.

What’s the Simulated Reality League?

Before learning why the SRL is better than virtual football, it is important to share a few things about it. Generally speaking, the Simulated Reality League is a place where advanced machine learning tech and AI process large amounts of data from numerous sporting events. Thanks to that, the AI algorithm can create different numbers of situations, gameplays, and outcomes.

To put it in other words, this complex system uses the real performance of teams or players and creates a similar sporting experience where the results are unpredictable. Unlike in Virtual Sports, where everything is based on the RNG system, here, the Simulated reality league matches are based on the performance of the players and teams. In the case of football, the league offers matches from the world’s best football competitions, such as the EPL, La Liga, and the Bundesliga, and all of them take place at the same time as the real games.

It’s no surprise that the Simulated reality focuses mainly on football because this is the most popular sport in the world. With that said, it is also possible to find simulations for cricket, especially the T20 format that includes the Indian Premier League. Additionally, players will find daily coverage of the big WTA and ATP tennis tournaments.

The specifics

Since Simulated Reality is not that common among sports bettors yet, many people are not exactly sure how it all works. The most important aspect to remember is that everything is unpredictable and exciting. The matches are simulations of real-time events, and AI and the RNG tech ensure that the result is not predetermined. Instead, it is based on what’s happening in the match, making it much more exciting.

AI is the main star of the show here and is the “engine” behind everything. The people behind the SRL train the algorithm to process a lot of data and come up with unique sequences. The latter replicates the real match, providing bettors with a unique experience.

Since all Simulated Reality is new, it also means that people who have not used it so far will have a completely new experience. As we have seen, SR is very different from virtual sports, so it will be something that players will be interested in.

Things to keep in mind when comparing SR to Virtual Football

As mentioned, these two have many differences that people need to take into account. Perhaps the biggest one is realism because V-sports are just simulations that are entirely based on RNG. This means that their outcomes are random and have nothing to do with the real performance of the teams and players.

Those who decide to bet on the Simulator Reality League, however, will see that the latter uses a different algorithm. In other words, players have various types of experience.

With that said, there are some drawbacks of the SRL that bettors need to take into account, one of which is availability. Virtual Sports are available around the clock, which means you can bet on them at any time of the day. The SRL, on the other hand, is based on actual matches across football, cricket, and tennis. This means that there are only a handful of events per day.

The second drawback that users have to take into consideration is the match’s length. As mentioned, virtual sports are always there when you need them, and each match lasts no more than a couple of minutes. This allows you to bet on multiple options.

Due to how it works, the SRL is not like that because the matches there take as much time as the real ones. In the case of soccer, players will have regular 90 minutes of play.

Conclusion

Despite some disadvantages, the SRL is a very attractive option for people who want to bet on football. The new tech is somewhat between real sports betting and virtual sports, so it will definitely have a lot of fans. It will be very interesting to keep track of this option’s future development.

By Aduragbemi Omiyale

On Thursday, December 26, 2024, boxing fans will be serenaded with good music by the duo of Mayorkun, also known as Mayor of Lagos and YKB.

The two Afrobeats artists will be at the 32nd edition of the prestigious boxing show, GOtv Boxing Night, at Tafawa Balewa Square, Lagos.

A statement from the organisers of the event, Flykite Productions, also disclosed that more music stars would perform at the show to be anchored by MC Lively.

The boxing showpiece, sponsored by GOtv, will be broadcast live on SuperSport channels across 50 African countries.

A total of six fights are scheduled for event, with the clash between the flamboyant Raheem “Badoo” Animashaun and Hammed “Ese” Ganiyu the pick of the lot. Also billed to hold is the national super welterweight title fight between Lateef “Enuoshe” Azeez and Rasheed “Fally Boy” Adeyemo.

In the other bouts, Sikiru “Omo Iya Eleja” Shogbesan will battle Imole “System” Oloyede in a national super featherweight challenge bout; Taiwo “Gentle Boy” Olowu will confront Jafaru “Tanka” Suleiman in a national super welterweight challenge, while Akintunde Abolade will square up against Emmanuel Abimbola in the national super flyweight category.

There will also be the exhibition clash between Kehinde Owoeye and Emmanuel Bamidele will face-off in the amateur flyweight category.

Commenting on the forthcoming programme, the Chief Operating Officer of Flykite Productions, Mr Bamidele Johnson, said, “Boxing fans know that the December edition of GOtv Boxing Night is always a vibrant celebration of boxing and music.

“This year, we are taking it up a notch by blending thrilling bouts with electrifying music and comedic performances by top entertainers, to give the fans a Boxing Day experience to remember.”