Have you heard of Superpicks on DSTV? where you can make predictions and win money without staking your money?
My question is can it still be called gambling if it is not played with money?
While technically it could be called gambling, it's definitely not in the same league as risking real money on a bet. With virtual currency, that has no exchangeable value, you can never judge the quality of your opponent and their betting patterns almost become meaningless - so it's hard to improve or derive practical knowledge if your intention was to convert to paid betting later. As the person placing the bet, you will be more likely to take time and think through your betting strategy when real money is at risk.
Gambling that does not involve money is just like we are trading on a demo account. Those that know what they are doing will understand that it is totally unnecessary to gamble with money. Money is the backbone on all gambling activities because the money involved will make everyone to come for the money and earn some good profits. When money is not involved or financial materials and object, people are not going to take that seriously because they have nothing to lose at the end of everything. Whether we gamble rarely or often, money is what makes us want to gamble more as a gambler.