Category: Sport

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Bremen’s Senator of the Interior, Ulrich Mäurer (SPD), has called for a ban on gambling advertising at the Conference of Interior Ministers from 1 to 3 December. The SPD politician is particularly critical of the advertising of sports betting. However, Mäurer’s demand failed, buten un binnen reported on Friday. Mäurer has been advocating for a ban on advertising for gambling and sports betting providers for quite some time. The reason is the high risk of addiction that gambling poses, according to the Bremen Senator of the Interior. Currently, there are about 200,000 people in Germany who are affected by pathological gambling. Another 230,000 show problematic gambling behaviour. Read the full article at www.casino24.org.

The advertising is everywhere:

With 35 legal providers nationwide by now, people are bombarded with commercials for gambling everywhere on TV, the internet or in stadiums. There is no escaping it.

Interior ministers decide against advertising ban

The development is worrying and runs counter to the objectives of the State Treaty on Gambling. Therefore, the treaty must be amended. Mäurer’s demand had been supported by party colleagues, but a unanimous agreement on the amendment of the State Treaty on Gambling had not been reached.

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Sporting events such as cricket and hockey games are celebrated like festivals in India. But betting on the games is still not legal according to the current legal situation. This could change with a recent initiative by Indian Member of Parliament Shashi Tharoor.

With “The Sports Bill”, Tharoor wants to bring the unregulated sports betting market in India into the 21st century and legalise online and land-based betting.

The South Asian country, which is made up of various states with different ethnic backgrounds, has never been able to establish a unified jurisdiction allowing online indian betting sites due to its religious and political differences.

No clear legislation

Similar to Germany, gambling in India is also a matter for the country. This means that only the federal states are allowed to draft and pass binding legislation on gambling.

Regulations at state level concern at best the prohibition of the event and participation in an illegal gambling, which can be punished with a fine or imprisonment anywhere in India.

Online gambling is also prohibited on the basis of the Information Technology Act 2000.

Only individual states such as Daman, Sikkik and Goa grant licenses for land-based casinos.

If the Indian politician Shashi Tharoor has his way, the huge unregulated market, which is a breeding ground for illegal gambling, will now be re-regulated on a federal basis.

Legal sports betting could help Indian sport

In particular, the online sports betting market, on which numerous bookmakers already operate without licences, urgently needs regulation. The urgency of the project is justified by the high turnover in the online sector.

According to a report by the Indian Legal Commission, unregulated providers will turn over more than 360 million US dollars (approx. 320 million euros) in 2018. Experts estimate that this figure could rise to as much as one billion US dollars (approx. 890 million euros) by 2021.

The Sports Bill, which was introduced into the Indian Parliament a few weeks ago, also aims to protect players and strengthen the integrity of sport.

In the past, there have always been prominent cases of game and betting manipulation. In 2000, for example, several Indian national cricket team players were banned for life for allegedly being involved in match-fraud.

Last year, former Indian national cricket captain Bushan Singh Bedi went so far as to describe the Indian Cricket Premier League as a “platform for money laundering”.

Legal, state-controlled betting, as demanded by Shashi Tharoor, could be a means to solve these problems.

Whether the dream of legal betting in India can actually be realised will be seen in the coming weeks and months. During this time the legislative initiative will be further discussed.

However, too much optimism might be premature. Especially the strongly religiously influenced states of India could have a problem with the legalisation of sports betting and get in the way of the project.

 

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The Noventi Open in Halle, Germany, continue with quarterfinal matches on Friday, and the home favourite and second-seeded Alexander Zverev takes on the unseeded Belgian David Goffin.

David Goffin vs Alexander Zverev

  • 2019 Noventi Open (Outdoor/Grass)
  • Gerry Webber Stadium, Halle
  • Friday 21st June
  • 12:30 UK Time

David Goffin News & Form

David Goffin came to Halle as the World No. 33 and had to face the eighth-seeded Guido Pella in the first round. Goffin thrashed off Pella 6-1 6-1, but the Belgian had a lot of problems to beat the World No. 41 Radu Albot in three sets (4-6 6-4 6-3) on Wednesday. David struggled throughout the first two sets, but he dominated Albot in the final set to broke his serve in the second game and allow no break points until the end of the match.

Goffin is pretty inconsistent this season, winning 16 of his 30 matches so far. He played a couple of semifinals in Marseille and Estoril, losing to Stefanos Tsitsipas on both occasions. Prior to the Noventi Open, Goffin played in ‘s-Hertogenbosch where he exited in the quarterfinal. Davis has an 18-17 record on grass in his career.

Alexander Zverev News & Form

The World No. 5 recorded a couple of straight-set victories over the first two rounds in Halle, beating Robin Haase 6-4 7-5 and Steve Johnson 6-3 7-5. Against Johnson on Thursday, Zverev recorded 11 aces and won 85% of his 1st serve points while saving both break points. On the other side, Zverev won 38% of points on Johnson’s service and converted three of his six break points.

Zverev showed some improvements in his play against Johnson to record his 25th victory of the season out of 37 matches. Also, it was Zverev’s 24th win in 36 outings on the grass court. The 22-year old German is looking for his first title in Halle after losing two finals in 2016 and 2017.

Goffin vs Zverev Head to Head

David Goffin and Alexander Zverev split their four head-to-head duels. While Goffin won a couple of matches on the hard court, Zverev was victorious twice on clay including their previous duel in Roma last season.

Goffin vs Zverev Betting Odds and Predictions

The bookies listed Alexander Zverev as a slight favourite here, and you can take him at 8/15 with Bet365 or Coral. David Goffin is available at 6/4 with Ladbrokes or Betfair. Also, Zverev is listed at 5/4 to win in straight sets with Betway.

The bookies expect to see a tight match, so the line on the total games has been set at 23.5 with Ladbrokes and Coral, and both platforms offer 10/11 odds on the over and 4/5 odds on the under. Also, the bookmakers wouldn’t be surprised if we see three sets in this match, and the price is 11/8 with Betway.

Goffin vs Zverev Betting Tip

This should be a really entertaining match between two talented players. Zverev certainly has an advantage on the grass court due to his strong serve, while Goffin relies more on his return and solid footwork.

Zverev’s style of play suits the grass court well, and he’s playing in front of the home audience, so I’m backing him to outlast Goffin. However, I won’t be greedy to go with the German in straight sets. In both his wins over Goffin, the Belgian managed to win a set. Hereof, take Alexander Zverev to win straight up at 8/15 with Bet365 or Coral.