Premier League Punters
Whilst successful premier league players definitely don’t seek out red cards on the field, it seems that off-pitch, red, as well as black cards from a handy deck, betting shop wagers and casino delights are extremely popular.
With the amount of travel involved in attending away matches, gambling on the go is the 21st century option for players. With many casino games now available online, such as a quick spin of roulette at Saudicasinos.com or a virtual visit to big-name bookmakers for bets on the matches, horses and hounds themselves, a significant number of premier leaguers over the years have found gambling to be as much a part of their beautiful game as being on the pitch itself.
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- Matthew Etherington, who’s enjoyed premier league success with Tottenham Hotspur, Stoke and West Ham is reputed to have spent well over £1 million through racing bets on both horses and greyhounds, as well as in poker games.
- Former Man United and Newcastle United winger Keith Gillespie was declared bankrupt in 2010 following years of gambling at bookmakers, including a spree he dubs “Black Friday” which cost him £47,000.
- Michael Chopra is another player who was at the top of his game on the field, but struggling with runs of poor luck in daily betting. He is reported to have spent over £2 million gambling during his football career.
- Dominic Matteo of Blackburn Rovers, Leeds United and Liverpool confessed to reporters that, despite the excitement he provided to football fans whilst on the pitch, when he wasn’t playing it was boredom which sparked his initial interest in gambling. Matteo made ready use of mobile technology for easy access to a range of gambling methods, including his favoured horse racing.
- Paul Merson, a respected former Arsenal and England player, also favoured gambling as an off-pitch past-time, reportedly spending up to £30,000 a time during betting sprees.
- David Bentley, of Arsenal, Blackburn and Tottenham Hotspur fame has also revealed that although he’s still young at under 30, he has been habitually gambling since he has been earning a premier league wage. He is reported to have been spending massive sums during sprees where he’s placed up to 100 bets a day.
Of course, as Bentley’s experience shows, it’s that premier league wage which is often the starting point for players’ and their relationships with gambling. Whether it’s through investing large amounts into owning racehorses, as Wayne Rooney and Michael Owen have been reported as doing, by filling time on journeys or stints away from home with a visit to online casinos and bookmakers, to having inter-team card schools, it seems that a significant number of players are aiming for big wins off the pitch as much as on them!
Premier League Puns
- The point is, Premier League teams typically rise or fall at a slow rate, season on season. Teams can certainly deviate from their average league position and experience temporary ‘blips’ or ‘streaks’ — but it tends to revert back. This plays to a bettor’s advantage, particularly if odds are totally irrational.
- Premier League Punters, part of the Bankroll Series, breaks down Premier League's week 10 matches delivering their predictions and tips for each match with guests Big Man on Campus @JeffNadu.