Casino and Betting News This Week
This is what happened in the world of casinos and betting this week.
David Ortiz Rejects Claims That He Had Links to Gambling
The popular Boston Red Sox player has spoken out to have his name cleared against reports that he may have been involved in baseball gambling.
This comes after the release of “Baseball Cop: The Dark Side of America’s National Pastime”, in which author Eddie Dominguez, a former MLB investigator and security agent for the Red Sox, gives his first-hand accounts of the shady aspects of the sport and what he has witnessed over the years.
Aside from the rife drug use, Dominguez claims that a man who was always in the company of Ortiz and always hung out with his posse, a certain Monga, bet thousands of dollars on baseball games during the 2005 season and was even betting against the Red Sox.
Ortiz, who is known in the baseball world, as ‘Big Papi’ spoke out on an Instagram post saying:
“If I had been involved in anything related to gambling in 2005 then my career wouldn’t have ended in 2016.” He went on to say “MLB woulda gotten rid of me ASAP cuz MLB don’t play that!!!!”
Ortiz points out that every MLP player is well aware how seriously MLB officials take gambling allegations by alluding to the Pete Rose scandal.
In his book, Dominguez does not directly involve Ortiz in any misconduct.
The Red Sox management were aware of the problem and held a meeting calling in Dominguez, Ortiz, Red Sox manager Terry Francona, and Kevin Hallinan, the head of league security. The Red Sox have refused to comment on the book’s claims and placed all responsibility on the investigation.
William Hill Strikes Lucrative Deal with Eldorado Resort
William Hill strikes gold with Eldorado resort as it has signed a 25-year partnership with one of the biggest regional casino operators in the US.
The British bookmaking behemoth will become Eldorado’s sole partner, offering digital and land-based sports betting services as well as online gaming in states where this has become legalised.
This deal will benefit William Hill extensively as Eldorado owns 21 casinos in 11 states and thus will grow its presence from 6 states to 13. William Hill currently has a 55 percent market share in Nevada and is at the moment the only service provider present in all 5 states that have legal sports betting up and running.
While William Hill’s CEO, Philip Bowcock, had claimed that he’d prefer the company to remain independent in the US, the Eldorado negotiation permitted William Hill to ‘retain control and run this as we see fit going forward’.
William Hill’s shares rose by 6 percent in the London Stock Exchange after the deal was announced.
Japanese Citizens in Yokohama Stand Almost Unanimously Against Casinos
A mind-blowing 94 percent of Yokohama citizens have negative opinions on the casinos, Integrated Resorts, built in Japan’s second most populated city. Yokohama has around 3.7 million residents.
GGRAsia, an Asian gaming media company, stated that a recent survey held by the government compiled this data.
Japan’s National Diet approved Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s Integrated Resorts Implementation Bill in July. Three multibillion dollar casino properties are given authorisation under the legislation.
Abe’s objective is to evolve the tourism industry in Japan. However, more than 65 percent of Japanese citizens remain “outright opposed” to Integrated Resorts.
Casino operators like MGM resorts and Melco Resorts are now turning to the next big city, Osaka. Officials there have strongly embraced Integrated Resorts and Governor Ichiro Matsui has had over 100 meetings with casino officials since May 2017.
Osaka is Japan’s 3rd biggest city with 2.6 million locals. Matsui is hoping to have the casinos open in time for the 2025 World Expo, which is going to be held in Osaka.
Finnish Teenager and Parents Convicted in $152,000 Online Casino Scam
A Finnish teenager has been sentenced with his parents for stealing the equivalent of $152,000 from an undisclosed online casino based in Malta, due to a glitch in the system.
The fault in the system permitted the 16-year old Finn to exploit it for 417 times between April and May 2017 until a casino employee uncovered the fraud.
The parents, who were both found guilty of transferring some of the stolen money to their bank accounts (around $20,000) were prosecuted as accomplices to the crime. The son’s status as a minor prevented the Finnish court from identifying all 3 defendants by name.
The boy has now received a suspended sentence of 1 year and 8 months after being convicted of aggravated fraud. The teen was ordered to pay the $152,000 along with $3,460 to cover the online gambling legal fees.
