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The Euro 2008 quarter-finals kick off tonight in Basel, Switzerland, with the most enticing contest of this stage of the tournament - Portugal vs Germany. With both teams among the top four favorites in the overall Euro 2008 odds, there is a lot hanging on the match. Portugal are a 9/2 equal second-favorite with Spain to win the tournament at UK-based Sportingbet, while Germany is also considered a real threat at 5/1. Holland is outright favorite at 7/2. This contest puts Germany in the unfamiliar position of underdog. After finishing second to Croatia in Group B, the Germans come up against a red-hot, undefeated Portugal keen to make amends for their loss to Greece in the final of Euro 2004. English football hall of famer Gary Lineker once remarked that "Football is a simple game; 22 men chase a ball for 90 minutes and at the end, the Germans win." This quote reminds us that the strong German footballing tradition that has seen the nation win three World Cups means one can never be overly confident against them. The bookmakers seem to agree, installing them as only slight underdogs despite their extremely poor form so far this tournament, which saw them lose to Croatia and only barely get over the line against Group B minnows Austria. Sportingbet has Germany 21/10 for the victory against Portugal 13/10, while Ladbrokes has looser odds on both teams, placing Germany at 9/4 odds against Portugal's 11/8. Portugal's Manchester United superstar Cristiano Ronaldo, rumored off the field to be considering a transfer to Real Madrid, is the 9/2 favorite at Sportingbet to open the scoring. Striker Miroslav Klose, still without a goal to his name in this tournament, heads the list of Germans with a chance to score first, at 6/1. The game begins 2045 at local (Swiss) time.
The relationship between Facebook and sports-predicting continues to grow, with around 40,000 users on the popular social networking website installing Euro 2008 predictor applications. Popular application The most popular Euro 2008 application was developed by Yahoo Eurosport. The application had over 23,000 users by the beginning of the quarter-final stage, with competitors chasing the ultimate reward of a 42-inch plasma TV. Users are invited to make their prediction on all the matches, with points received in regard to how close one comes to predicting the correct score. Continuous flirtation The introduction of sports-predicting games to Facebook is not a new phenomenon. In March we reported on the US Federal Government's investigation into the website hosting betting on the NCAA basketball tournament. In that case, participants paid an entrance fee, with the winnings split between those whose predictions were closest to the real results. The open nature of Facebook means any of its more than 80 million users can develop an application when armed with the necessary computer skills. Applications ranging from badges showing support for politicians to quizzes revealing what sort of lover a person is can be added to user profiles at their choosing. More than 2300 of the approximately 28,000 applications on Facebook are sports-oriented. During the regular football season, users can compete in competitions where they predict the outcomes of games in England, Italy and other popular leagues. This extends to many other sports as well. From workplace to Facebook Sports-predicting competitions have been a staple of workplaces around the world for many years. While there is often little or no money exchanged, the popularity of sports-predicting games on Facebook such as Euro 2008 is evidence of the ever-growing link between gambling and the web.
Italy would be quietly relishing the role of underdog coming into tonight's Euro 2008 quarter-final with Spain, with the lower-ranked sides having already won in each of the three previous quarter-finals in this tournament. With Portugal losing 3-2 to Germany, Croatia going down on penalties to Turkey, and Holland falling 3-1 in extra-time to Russia in the biggest boil-over of the competition, the Spanish will be hoping the hoodoo doesn't affect them. Also working against the Spanish is their own history of early exits at major tournaments. Despite being considered one of the powerhouses of European football, Spain's national team, known to its fans as la roja (the red one), has not made it past the quarter-final stage at a major competition since losing 2-0 to France in the final of the 1984 European Championships. Also important is the fact that it has been 88 years since Spain last beat Italy in a match for official points. Having said all that, Spain's form in this tournament has been far more impressive than that of their Italian opponents. La roja qualified in first place in Group D, defeating Russia, Sweden and Greece. The Azzurri (The Blues) finished second in Group C, recovering from a first-up thrashing by Holland to draw with Romania and defeat arch-rivals France. Sportingbet UK is offering 7/5 odds for a Spanish victory against Italy's 39/20. Similarly, Ladbrokes has Spain at 6/4 and Italy at a straight 2/1. Spanish strike pair David Villa and Fernando Torres lead the field in man of the match betting, with Sportingbet quoting both of them at 19/4. Other interesting areas of betting include predicting whether the woodwork will be hit during the match. The odds suggest yes (3/4). The winner of tonight's match will face Russia in the semi-finals on Thursday. Germany plays Turkey in the other semi on Wednesday.
With just four teams - Germany, Turkey, Spain and Russia - left in Euro 2008, Germany is the new favorite to take out the tournament. The Germans, 7/5 favorite to become champions at UK-based Sportingbet, earn the mantle thanks to a combination of reputation and their thrilling 3-2 quarter-final victory over the highly-regarded Portugal. Germany had a relatively easy path through the group stages, yet barely made it out alive. After winning 2-0 against Poland, the three-time World Cup champions slipped up against Croatia 2-1 before scraping together an unconvincing 1-0 win against neighbors and co-linguists Austria. But the win over Portugal means they're playing into form at the right time. Semi-final opponents Turkey are the rank outsiders to win the tournament at a tempting 10/1. The Turks are no strangers to the late stages of major tournaments, having made the 2002 World Cup semi-finals, where they bowed out to eventual champions Brazil. The underdogs have gone from strength-to-strength in this tournament. After losing 2-0 to Portugal in the opener, they defeated tournament co-hosts Switzerland 2-1, the highly-fancied Czechs 3-2, and then edged out Croatia on penalties after scoring a last-gasp equalizer in extra-time. Spain plays Russia in the other semi. Spain is the only unbeaten team at Euro 2008, and already have a win over the Russians to their name. They are almost level-pegging with Germany at 8/5 to win the final. Spain knocked World Cup holders Italy out of the tournament last night on penalties after both teams failed to score during 120 minutes of regular and extra time. In the group stage Spain defeated Sweden and Greece. But most importantly they thrashed next-up opponents Russia 4-1 in their opening fixture. Despite the loss, Russia's form has risen quickly since that opening match. They carry 7/2 odds to win the tournament after three straight wins over Greece, Sweden and then red-hot Holland in the quarter-finals. Russian coach Guus Hiddink has success wherever he coaches. But with World Cup semi-final appearances with Holland (1998) and South Korea (2002), and then a last-16 achievement with Australia (2006), Hiddink will be hoping to take Russia even further at Euro 2008 and achieve a personal best. Germany vs Turkey begins 2045 local time in Basel, Switzerland. Spain faces off with Russia 24 hours later in the Austrian capital Vienna.
Despite poor form, Roger Federer is the bookmakers' favorite to take out a record sixth consecutive Wimbledon title, breaking Bjorn Borg's previous best of five straight Wimbledon's won between 1976-80. Sportingbet UK has Federer at even money to survive from the 128-strong field, while Ladbrokes lists him at a slightly looser 5/4. Such has been Federer's dominance at this tournament in recent years that only a handful of other players are considered to even be in the mix. Spaniard and world number two Rafael Nadal, who defeated Federer in the French Open final two weeks ago, is quoted by Sportingbet at 15/8. The rest of the field is led by world number three, Serb Nojak Djokovic, 5/1 and American Andy Roddick, 10/1, before a massive drop to the rest of the players, beginning with local Andy Murray, 40/1. The Ladies Singles is expected to be a little more competitive. World number two Maria Sharapova of Russia is the tournament favorite at 11/4, but faces stiff competition from Serbian world number one Ana Ivanovic, 7/2, and the Williams sisters Serena 7/2 and Venus 5/1. Ivanovic's compatriot Jelena Jankovic, 12/1, and Sharapova's fellow countrywoman 16/1 round out the odds nicely. With the increasing popularity of sports-betting online, Ladbrokes.com is offering some special bets in association with the 2008 Wimbledon tournament. These include a refund on two sets to love matches, meaning that if someone places a bet on a singles match and their player goes on to lose after leading two sets to love, the outlay will be refunded. Ladbrokes will also double a punter's winnings if their selection in a ladies singles match records a double bagel - a 6-0 6-0 victory. The tournament goes for two weeks, with the ladies' and men's finals taking place on 5 and 6 July.
Far East locations such as Singapore and Macau are gambling havens. Other countries in the region, such as Japan and China have banned the practice for decades. However, there appears to be a movement towards deregulation. Painful History During the Edo period (1603-1868), Japanese society experienced great trauma through its open gambling policy. Many Japanese ended up selling their daughters into slavery to pay off their gambling debts. As a result, in the late 19 th century, Japan decided to make the practice of open gambling illegal. Boom and Bust Following the Second World war, Japan experienced rapid growth, and the government's coffers swelled from tax revenues. However, since the early 1990s, an economic downturn has persuaded government officials to look for new sources of funds. One of these is the potential tax income from legalizing online and land-based gambling. A Nationof Gamblers Traditionally, Japanese people have been keen gamblers. In spite of the government ban on casinos, other ways of having a flutter do exist. These include horse, motor car, and bicycle racing where gambling is permitted. Additionally, parlor games such as Mah Jong and Pachinko are officially sanctioned. However, these activities bring little tax revenue to the government. Yakuza In spite of the official government ban on gambling, many illicit casinos do exist, particularly in the red lights district of Tokyo. These small casinos are normally housed in bars and seedy massage parlors, but feed the gambling needs of local and visiting businessmen to the area. Controlled by Japan's infamous mafia or Yakuza, these organizations would have much to lose if casino gambling became legalized. Gold Mine Many Japanese officials and businessmen believe that legalizing casino gambling would produce a potential gold mine. Conservative estimates put tax revenues at around 1 billion US dollars just to build six public casinos at the Japanese seaside resort of Obaida alone. With the increase in tax income and potential knock-on effect to increased tourism, the question is not if the Japanese government will open the doors to online and land-based gambling, but when.
The second round of the prestigious Wimbledon Grand Slam tournament begins today in London, with most of the top seeds in both the men's and ladies' singles still in contention to win the £11.8 million (US$23.3 million) tournament. Of the big names in the men's draw, only fourth-seeded Nicolay Davydenko of Russia and seventh-seeded Argentinian David Nalbandia were knocked out in the first round. None of the top women's seeds were eliminated. World number one Roger Federer of Switzerland remains the one to beat in this tournament as he chases a record sixth consecutive Wimbledon title and 13 th Grand Slam title overall. Sportingbet UK has him at evens to win the tournament. On the women's side second seeded Russian Maria Sharapova is unchanged as 11/4 favorite. With 32 matches in both the men's and ladies' second rounds, Ladbrokes UK continues to offer an interesting variety of betting options. Apart from the regular head-to-head singles betting on offer, punters can go online and access the bookmaker's "strawberries and cream" specials, named after the dish that has become synonymous with the annual tournament. Bets on offer in the second round under the "strawberries and cream" banner include: Federer, Ivanovic (Serbia) and Serena Williams (US) to not win in straight sets - 6/4; Federer, Djokovic (Serbia), Hewitt (Australia) and Ancic (Croatia) to all win in straight sets - 7/2; and one for all the Aussies out there, with Lleyton Hewitt to win three sets to love in the men's singles, Samantha Stosur to win 2-1 and Casey Dellacqua 2-1 in the ladies' - 25/1. Play begins each day at midday local (United Kingdom) time.
While there are a couple of companies in Singapore that offers the small Asian nation's residents gambling and betting services, there is no official, not to mention legal, online gambling services. This, apparently, does not stop Singaporeans from betting online. The legal option The Singapore Pools and the Singapore Turf Club are the two gambling companies allowed by Singapore law to offer any betting facilities to local residents. These services do not include any online services. Any other activity is prohibited by the Betting Act and the Common Gaming Houses Act, which regards it as an offence. Reality check A survey by the Ministry for Community Development Youth and Sports, published by AsiaOne, reports that Singaporeans keep on betting online just as well, and in greater numbers than only a few years ago. In 2005 0.1 percent of respondents said they gamble online. The latest report has the figure at 1 percent - a tenfold rise. They are young and tech-savvy, the survey further finds.
A crackdown on the possibility of players taking bribes to throw matches has been implemented this week with the beginning of the world's most prestigious tennis tournament, The Championships at Wimbledon. New restrictions The All England Club, which has run the grand-slam tournament since its establishment back in 1877, has implemented tougher restrictions on access to the players' locker rooms since the beginning of this year's tournament last Monday. The restrictions come at the same time as the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), which runs the men's game, along with the Womens' Tennis Association (WTA), look set to approve 15 recommendations from an independent panel on combating corruption in tennis. The four Grand Slams (Wimbledon, the US Open, the French Open and the Australian Open) and the International Tennis Federation are also expected to endorse the recommendations. Punishments for involvement in match-fixing will be much stronger under the new guidelines, with possible life-bans and higher fines for transgressors. Players will be required to report any suspicious activity within 48 hours of being approached by gambling syndicates in relation to match-fixing. Davydenko accused The measures are particularly timely given that they have coincided with this year's Wimbledon tournament. Although most of the favorites made it safely through their first-round matches on Monday and Tuesday, fourth-seeded Russian Nicolay Davydenko - who is still under investigation by the sport's governing body after UK-based online bookmaker Betfair reported irregular betting patterns on a match from 2007 - received tricky questions from reporters after bowing out in straight sets on Tuesday to lowly-ranked German Benjamin Becker (no relation to German tennis legend Boris Becker). In response to the allegations he threw the match against Argentine Martin Vassallo Arguello in Sopot, Poland, in August 2007, Davydenko said on Tuesday: "I spoke on the centre court with my wife in Russian (and) maybe it's possible, I say something (like), 'I don't want to play or I can retire'." He went on to say that because of the large presence of Russian fans at the match, somebody from the crowd could have misunderstood the connotations of what he had been saying. Wimbledon 2008 The biggest shock of the 2008 Championships thus far occurred on Wednesday when world number three and 2008 Australian Open winner Nojak Djokovic of Serbia bowed out in straight sets in his second round match to 75th ranked Marat Safin of Russia, himself a former US Open (2000) and Australian Open (2005) winner. The second round of the men's and ladies' singles continues today, with the third round set to begin tomorrow.
The Weekly Edition, an OCR Live! production in which Kate brings you the headlines for the past week, including political support of online gambling is growing, Facebook proves an attractive platform for sports betting, and PPA lobbying to Get Out the Vote. UIGEA Opposition Grows While we reported on comments by gaming industry experts who said UIGEA cannot be implemented, two more sponsors joined a bill to repeal the act. Facebook Flirts with Gambling Euro 2008 is the latest sporting event to be included on the popular social networking website, with users competing for prizes. Poker Pros Get Out the Vote A new campaign by the Poker Players Alliance aims to increase poker's political presence in Washington in the lead-up to the 2008 presidential election.
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