The Sad Tale of Online Attacks Against Swedish Football
With the pandemic causing turmoil to the sporting calendar, gamblers have been looking for other avenues to explore. Some of these, such as eSports and no deposit casinos, are innocuous, but a dark side has been unearthed with the bizarre case of Swedish football’s lower leagues suffering online attacks.
Swedish Soccer Faces Unexpected Overseas Abuse
Sport and sports betting have been dramatically affected by the coronavirus global pandemic. Nothing says transmission spike quite like 60,000 people crammed into one building, so, naturally, football from England to Spain – where the Wuhan football team visited just before the whole outbreak happened – has been called off.
Small clubs naturally have fewer fans, and if you go down the leagues far enough you end up with maybe a few dozen in attendance at best. Because of this, some smaller teams (including in Sweden, which doesn’t have a formal lockdown, contrary to much of Europe) are still playing. And because bookies and punters alike are starved of gambling opportunities, one of the options they’ve been drawn to is betting on familiar sports at these lower, still-playing leagues.
Sadly, this has had a serious negative consequence. Players (and sometimes ex-players) have been subjected to unsolicited contact from those wanting information on how they might play, with some communications being blatantly abusive. Skabersjo chairman Mattias Andersson told the Associated Press after one result that the team had suffered multiple death threats. Far from a chance to shine in the spotlight, Swedish footballers have discovered that there are plenty of obnoxious people willing to hurl abuse from across the world.
Accusations of match-fixing have followed results, sadly robbing those few footballers still able to play of the joy of sport as fixtures get cancelled to avoid the impact from overseas morons. Most gamblers are decent people, but the darker fringe has managed to make an already bad situation just a little bit worse.
Moving Forward to Betting and No Deposit Casinos
A major area of gambling that’s unaffected by the pandemic is online casinos. Due to their online nature, no deposit casinos have been operating pretty much as normal, and can be a mega fun way for gamblers to indulge themselves whilst sports are away.
One of the smartest ways to use such online gambling sites is to snap up no deposit promos, which give players a chance to win real cash prizes without having to deposit anything (hence the name). When playing with a no deposit bonus be sure to focus on average return (so, high RTP slots if reels are your thing, and blackjack if table games suit you better) because they usually come with an upper limit of a few hundred dollars/pounds/euros. However, wagering requirements and game contributions will likely mean that slots are still your best bet.
No deposit promos come in a variety of forms, with free spins mostly tied to specific slots, free credits associated with particular table games, and free cash more flexible. You might even have a free play bonus, a no deposit deal that entails a short time limit of an hour or two and a larger sum to play with. When the time runs out, the starting money vanishes but you get to keep any profit (up to a limit and perhaps with further terms such as playthrough requirements).
In addition to being a risk-free way of playing at online casinos, no deposit bonuses also allow newcomers to try games out and see if online gambling sites are their cup of tea.
Other Alternative Betting Markets
There are alternatives to looking further down the order of preferred sports. These can include foreign markets that might not otherwise be of interest (Taiwanese basketball springs to mind), eSports, or new/novelty markets, from political buzzword bingo to temperatures.
Some countries have been affected more than others by the pandemic. At the time of writing, Taiwan and South Korea (and possibly Vietnam) seem to be the only ones with a very good handle on it. One option for gamblers is to look at familiar sports in unfamiliar settings and browse the markets to see how football in Taiwan’s Premier League is shaping up (to give one example).
Many have turned to video games to fill the time during lockdown, and this applies to sports as well. Markets had already been growing for eSports, and the pandemic has put rocket boosters under this, as a combination of cancelled mainstream sports and millions of people forced to stay at home has fuelled interest massively. League of Legends, CS:GO and more have all proven popular viewing and betting options in the void left by the widespread absence of other sports.
As with online casino betting, always remember to check that your preferred sportsbook has secure connections and is licensed appropriately.
When Will Football Return?
Sports fans are keen to know when football, and other sports, will return. The simple answer is that we can’t be sure, and it may vary a lot from one country to the next. It’s also possible that lockdowns might be re-imposed if the much-feared second wave of the pandemic comes to pass.
Germany’s Bundesliga is hoping to get going again in May, but it’s worth noting the country is ahead of the curve compared to other large European nations, including the United Kingdom, France, Spain, and Italy. Even if Germany’s football resumes soon, other national leagues in Europe could be weeks or even months behind.
0 Comments