Sport is made for betting

Greece, Italy and Turkey are making strides in rooting out match-fixing in their football leagues - there's a long way to go though. Don't believe for a moment that these are isolated cases... Riots follow ban for 2 clubs in Greek league Italian authorities rush to end match-fixing scandal Turkish league endorses play-offs amid match-fixing allegations

Could a politician attempt a more impossible task than this one? New EU Commissioner Wants to Settle Online Gambling Mess The confusion over online gambling in EU member states is set to be ironed out by new Internal Market Commissioner Michel Barnier, a move that will be closely followed by Malta. France, Italy, Greece, Portugal, Germany, Norway, Poland, Sweden.. the list goes on of countries who want to set their own rules and defy European Union directives, or at least bend them a bit. Forcing these EU members states to comply is like telling banks they have to start responsible and not giving out individual bonuses bigger than the GDP of a third-world country. Or trying to get football players to act as role models and respect referees like rugby players. In a line from the classic Aussie film, The Castle, "Tell him he's dreaming!". In another note, I notice that Betfair have given up their respect/fear of French authority and now have the betting site in French as we...

Following on from their sponsorship of AC Milan, Bwin are getting aggressive in Italy, this time in poker. Bwin eyes Gioco Digitale deal in Italy Gioco Digitale came to prominence when it swiftly took the number one spot in the burgeoning Italian tournament poker market after it opened up for business late last year. If you've never heard of Gioco Digitale like me, here's a look at their rather flash looking blog site .

In a small article in yesterday's Racing Post, it was announced that Sportingbet have given up on their attempt to break into the Italian market and sold the operation to the local management team. The Italian government opened up sports betting on their terms to foreign operators a couple of years ago, and it has been very slow progress for the new entrants - as if often the case with business in Italy! I believe they aren't the first firm to pack and go home either. It's all about who you know in Italian business and government...