Sport is made for betting

For several years, there has been much debate about German law and the licensing of sports betting. It's a country divided up into provinces which often have conflicting laws. Most, if not all, of the 'legal' online betting licences in Germany stem from former East German regions which were somehow able to offer things which weren't allowed elsewhere in the unified country. Now with the EU pushing hard for all member states to allow/regulate online gambling, Germany decided it had better follow suit before it got dragged through the courts forever and a day. And this is what they come up with.... Germany’s non-ratified sports betting proposals 7 five-year licences to be issued 16.67% turnover tax Live betting but only on final result. No in-play Only land based casinos would be able to operate online casino Sports betting advertising only allowed on or in sports arenas and club shirts and not on television ----- France is the most recent big European nat...

Am I Blue, the 33/1 outsider in the morning Racing Post forecast, with a formline of 7-0-0, wins by about 20 lengths (19 officially) in the 3.10 at Hereford after a huge, sustained gamble. Dean Coleman, a 5lb claimer, is named to ride the horse, the money goes on (started 5/1 second favourite) and lo and behold, the jockey is replaced, and on goes leading jumps jockey Richard Johnson. Trainer lying through her teeth after the race to say 'we haven't backed it'. Yeah sure. OK, perhaps she didn't, but it was certainly set up for a sting. Lives next to Tim Vaughan, pure coincidence that the Vaughan stable jockey goes on and it bolts in. 1 - surely an investigation is required after a horse looks completely useless in its previous three starts, and then wins by panels. 2 - it's ridiculous that a leading senior jockey is allowed to take over from a conditional jockey. Ireland and Australia have a 'like-for-like' rule - i.e. a senior jockey can only replac...

This is something I never thought would happen. After the debacle of the ICC bowing to pressure from the Asian power-holders and overturning the Pakistan forfeit at the Oval in 2006, they've now gone and reversed the overturned decision! Read the Cricinfo article here . Key piece of the article: "The ICC has no power under the laws of cricket to decide that results should be altered, whether it feels it's 'inappropriate' or otherwise," Tony Lewis, the chairman of the MCC's world cricket committee, had said in a statement in October. "The ICC's decision is wrong and sets a very dangerous precedent. Cricket is the worse for this decision." Too bloody right too. Overturning decisions weeks, months or years later is a farce, it makes a complete mockery of the sport. UK horseracing should take note. Being able to take a protest to court, months after all punters have been paid out is just ridiculous.