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It would appear that a new free online Sports betting site is paving the way for US Players to legally be able to enjoy online sports betting. Bet Against Me.com officially launched on the 9th December 2008 and allows for sports betting with virtual money, it costs bettors nothing to register and play, with all prize money given in real cash and the result of sponsorship from advertisers. Due to the nature of this online sports betting site there are no legal issues with the US authorities, and certainly no risk to the players concerned. New accounts are funded with $10,000 of play money each week and prizes are given for those account holders who have the highest amount of fictional money in their account on a daily and weekly basis with the opportunity win a Grand Prize.

Concerns over match fixing and online irregular betting activities, has prompted UEFA and over twenty other International sports bodies to attempt to gain better protection from Brussels. At a meeting in Brussels on the 4th December, Industry representatives expressed their concern over the increase in online sports betting and the integrity of the sports industry as a whole. They have joined together to explore how all the world sporting events can maintain their integrity in the face of the vast and rapid growth in online sports betting products. The online betting industry allows not only for the backing but also the laying of bets on the predicted outcome of sports events worldwide, so it is essential that worries about match fixing are not allowed to take hold.

Setanta Sports have secured a partnership with Top Rank to exclusively broadcast the following live boxing events; the IBO, IBF and WBO World Heavyweight fight between Wladimir ‘Dr. Steel Hammer’ Klitschko and Hasim ‘The Rock’ Rahman and the WBO Junior Welterweight title fight between Kendall Holt and Ricardo Torres. The Klitschko v Rahman and Holt v Torres fights take place at the Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey in the USA on Saturday 13th December 2008.

The Football Association in conjunction with The Gambling Commission have over the last few months been investigating allegations of unusual online betting patterns in the Asian market in respect of the Norwich V Derby match which took place on the 4th October this year at Carrow Road. The Norwich home game resulted in a win for Derby 2-1 which although on the day resulted in huge amounts of elation for Derby, went on to cause much chagrin shortly afterwards when the match fixing allegations were made.

The allegations of match fixing caused the furore when two Members of Parliament, Ian Gibson - MP Norwich North and Norman Lamb – Norfolk North MP tabled questions to Andy Burnham the Culture Secretary in relation to the unusual online betting patterns, and demanded to know if the FA were in fact investigating the match.

Bookies are in a panic the length and breadth of the country due to the great British weather and the seasonal White Christmas Betting. The recent outbreaks of snow in parts of the north of England and Scotland have caused bookies to look at their White Christmas Betting odds again worried that they might be left with a bloody nose if the current cold snap continues. The weather forecasters have done little to allay their fears of White Christmas Betting losses of up to £1m with predictions of further snowfalls and depths of snow up to 20cm in some areas. The weathermen are also likely to cause the rest of the nation some concern by forecasting blizzard conditions for some parts of the UK, making that last minute Christmas shopping a tiresome ordeal.

The Gambling Commission are responsible for the regulating of all gambling organisations and ensure that vulnerable people and in particular children are protected from any consequential harm from gambling, as well as ensuring Casinos, bingo halls, gaming machines and lotteries and now including online, television and telephone gambling, follow all the necessary rules and regulations of the Gambling Act 2005. It is worth noting however, that the commission are not responsible for regulating the National Lottery which is controlled by the National Lottery Commission, nor Spread Betting which is controlled by the Financial Services Authority.

Well the X Factor 2008 race is almost run and the runners and riders are on the homeward straight, there is still time though to place a special TV bet on the Ultimate winner of the X Factor 2008. Do you think that Diana Vickers (the bookies X Factor favourite) has that all important star quality, or are you taken by the boyish Gaelic charm of Eoghan Quigg? Who will finally win the X Factor 2008, which act will you place a TV bet on to win?

Betting Hideout is all about bringing you all the best betting news and as we head towards Christmas time there is one bet that is prominent in our minds – no not Santa getting booked for drink driving his sleigh! Not that we are casting aspersions but with all that sherry left out for him, he must surely be over the drink Sleigh limit each year. Without doubt it is a pretty hilarious thought, Father Christmas careering about the skies completely sozzled and swerving out of the way of aircraft, being chased by the Boys in Blue in a Police helicopter. Although we are quite sure that he wouldn’t risk his sleigh driving licence and certainly wouldn’t want to upset all the kids in the world by spending Christmas Eve in the clink. The big bet we are referring to is ‘Will it be a White Christmas’ Most of the bookies are giving odds of 5/1 on London having a white Christmas with Aberdeen and Edinburgh 3/1. Paddy Power has odds of a White Christmas in New York of 13/8 however Boston and Berlin only manage odds of 11/10 – making them a very attractive proposition for a very seasonal Christmas break.

Three times World Snooker Championship winner and also last years winner Ronnie O’Sullivan is obviously going to be the bookies favourite and odds for the forthcoming 2009 World Snooker Championship stand with most bookies at 2/1. However if you are going to place a snooker bet on Rocket Ronnie to win then there is no better place than Coral which at the present moment is offering odds of 5/2, it is worth getting in quickly with your sports betting though because the nearer the tournament date comes the less likely that you will obtain these odds. Although the tournament is not due to start until 20th April 2009 and the winner of the 2009 World Snooker Championship won’t be known until 6th May 2009, snooker bets are still being taken.