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World Cup Football: The Facts You Didn’t (And Need to) Know!

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May 28, 2018

With the World Cup squads having been announced in recent days by all participating nations, the excitement levels are going through the roof. The previous World Cup in Brazil saw many surprises, none more so than the host nation being embarrassed 7-1 by the Germans in the semi-final. The Germans went on to win the trophy against Argentina in extra time, in what turned out to be the most expensive football match ever in terms of ticket prices, with some going for as much as $20,000 a seat. We have taken a look some of the other fun World Cup facts:

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Stadium Distances
Unlike other sporting tournaments like the Olympics, the World Cup is evenly spread throughout a nation. Four years ago in Brazil, there were twelve different stadiums with distances as much as 2,000 miles between them. The journey from Porto Alegre to Fortaleza would have taken over 5 hours one way. Similarly, in Russia, the distance between Yekaterinburg in the east and Kaliningrad in the west is roughly the same distance as London to Moscow!

3.2 Billion Viewers
At the last World Cup in Brazil, a truly incredibly statistic was revealed, which was that almost half of the world’s entire population tuned in to watch the event. When you consider that Brazil is widely regarded as the greatest nation to ever play the beautiful game, then it’s easy to see why. Add to that the golden generation of stars such as Messi and Ronaldo at the peak of their powers, and an England team that somehow always manages to break our hearts!

Baby Booms
It has often been said that the countries that win a World Cup often experience a baby boom in the coming months. This has been noted for numerous countries who have had success in tournaments such as the French in 1998 and the Spanish in 2010. It’s even happened for countries that didn’t even win a tournament, but exceeded expectations. Nine months after Iceland’s stunning victory against England in Euro 2016, hospitals all over the Scandinavian country were suddenly more inhabited than ever before!

3 Million Beers
At the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, a grand total of 750,000 litres of beer were sold at the stadiums, equating to roughly 3 million beers in total. While you may be thinking that’s one hell of a collective hangover in the morning, 390,600 hot dogs were also sold, which must have taken the edge off somewhat!

European Dominance
Out of all the World Cup finals ever played, European teams have only failed to reach the final twice. European nations have won 58.8% of the finals matches that they’ve played in, and it is the Italians and the Germans who are the dominant teams on the continent with 4 titles each to their name and only 1 behind Brazil.

2018 FIFA World Cup Facts

Football

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May 23, 2018

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The World Cup is now less than a month away, and with squad announcements filtering in, the excitement surrounding the event just went up a notch.

Perhaps the one fact which makes this tournament unique is that it is being played across four time zones. With eleven time zones in Russia, this World Cup could have been absolute hell for some. Fortunately, the action will be largely restricted to European Russia, but there is still a challenge for tournament coordinators.

world cup russia 2018

With nearly 2,000 miles separating the furthest west (Kaliningrad) and the furthest east (Yekaterinburg) stadiums, this tournament promises to show exactly how much logistical muscle FIFA now has.

In addition to the issue of time zones, there are four more talking points ahead of Russia.

Enter Iceland and Panama

There are two nations making a World Cup debut: Iceland and Panama. Yet, debuting teams seldom have as much expectation surrounding them as the Iceland squad does. Years of investment into Icelandic football, materialised by the presence of indoor training academies, finally paid off in 2016 with a run to the Euro 2016 quarter-finals. The Iceland team remained strong thereafter, and progressed as winners from their qualification group for the World Cup.

By contrast, Panama carries nothing in the way of expectation, and the squad contains no players with notable playing experience in the UEFA Champions League. Regardless, the history of the World Cup is awash with debutants that stunned. In the two World Cups of the 2000s, Senegal and Ghana both negotiated the group stages on their respective debuts. Going further back, another Central American nation did the same in 1990, with Costa Rica progressing after beating a strong Sweden side 2-1.

Exit the veterans

For England, Gary Cahill, Ashley Young and Jamie Vardy will be making their final appearance at a World Cup final. All are now in their thirties, but boast the type of experience that can galvanise younger players like Trent Alexander-Arnold and Ruben Loftus-Cheek.

There are also some well-known players within other teams, who have endeared themselves to Englanders through club-level heroics, and all of them will know that this summer’s tournament represents their World Cup swansong. Belgian thirty-something duo Vincent Kompany (Manchester City) and Thomas Vermaelen (Tottenham) have been exceptional in defence for their respective clubs, and will certainly give Jamie Vardy a tough time, in the game that the World Cup spreads suggest will determine the winners of Group G.

Of course, there is one superstar who will be more eager than anybody else to win the World Cup on what must be his last attempt. Alongside a Lionel Messi who could still be game for 2022, Cristiano Ronaldo has been one of the most electrifying athletes of his generation. Without his influence, Portugal could never have won Euro 2016, and at the age of 33, it is now or never for ‘#CR7’ to take the big one.

A poisoned chalice?

The last two World Cups have seen the reigning holders bow out at the group stage. 2014 saw Spain lose 5-1 to the Netherlands in a re-run of the 2010 final. It was a seismic result that propelled the Dutch all the way to the semi finals, but the tables have since turned again, with the Netherlands failing to qualify and Spain rampaging to top spot in the qualifiers.

In 2010, Italy fared even worse in their own cup defence, finishing last in a group containing an unfancied New Zealand side. Indeed, only Brazil’s negotiation of the group stage in 2006 prevented this apparent ‘curse’ from being given an even deeper context. France’s bottom-placed finish in the 2002 group stages is also an infamous example of how far a defending champion can fall.

Up for grabs?

There is better news, however, for ‘seeded’ teams – or teams drawn from pot 1. Since 1990, every cup-winning nation has been drawn from pot 1. Argentina is the last nation to defy the odds in that respect, doing so via Diego Maradona’s heroics in 1986. Additionally, no team qualifying from the CONCACAF (North American), CAF (African), AFC (Asian) or OFC (Oceanic) regions has ever won the cup.

Speaking of trophies, the ‘golden boot’ carries a curse of its own, in that no player has won it alongside a World Cup winner’s medal since 1982. Paolo Rossi remains the last man to pull off a personal ‘double’, but no man has ever managed to win it twice in a row. For that reason, James Rodriguez will be a particular person of interest this summer, having taken it in 2014 with six goals.

Behind the Reels

Other Sports

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May 17, 2018

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There is a large amount of work that goes into creating the latest and best online slots. From the humble work of Charles Fay, slots have come way. But they have maintained the central concept of Fay’s invention.

The Liberty Bell was the first real money slot machine, click here to see more slots games. This device had three drums rolling to produce the outcome of the bet. As you can expect the machine was a lot simpler than today’s slots.

How the Latest Slots Work

There are still some casinos like goldenrivieracasino, where you can play slots that still use drums. But it will be difficult finding these classic slots that are still in good working order. Everyone has migrated to digital games. Even slot title from the earlier years can be found on the digital games.

Instead of the drums, a sophisticated system was created to generate the sequence of symbols after every spin. Slots whether online or at land-based casinos now use Random Number Generators (RNG).

An RNG is a mathematical algorithm which randomly determines when each reel will stop. This system makes it impossible for a machine to be hot or cold as each successive spin is not affected by the previous spin.

However, the machines are designed to payout a certain percentage of bets made. This percentage becomes perfect in the very long term. For example, after 1 million spins a slot should have paid back 95% of the money wagered on the game.

This is where chance takes over. The machine can give a lot of really small wins and small loses over a period of time. These are the winning streaks and losing streaks that gamblers are so fond of talking about. And then there is that time when the game just goes mad and gives massive jackpot wins. Or it can just starts not giving wins.

These are the events that naturally occur in “the life” of a slot machine. Which is why the games are so entertaining so that you keep playing even when the chance is not favoring you.

A beginner’s guide to betting on horse-racing

Other Sports

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May 16, 2018

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Whether you’re a complete novice or an occasional punter, getting to know the world of horse-racing betting can seem a daunting task at first. However, once you get to grips with a few basic tips it all starts to make a lot more sense and becomes more enjoyable. We take a you through some beginner horse racing tips to get you started below:

If you’re looking for the latest horse-racing tips then you can also head over to The Winners Enclsoure. This site offers free daily tips and previews on all practically race meetings, and they also keep their followers in the loop with all of the latest racing news to ensure that you have up-to-date information ahead of picking your bet.

Betting only what you can afford, and betting responsibly is of course paramount, and should never be compromised. With that being said, so long as you follow those rules then there’s no reason why betting on horse-racing won’t be a fun experience for you.

Research form

It perhaps goes without saying, but like any bet you place on a sports market, you should always do your research beforehand – as thoroughly as possible. There is a wide variety of ways and means to go about checking horse-racing form and stats, both online and more traditional methods. If you’re looking for the most up-to-date information, then of course online is the better route for you. Most bookmaker websites also now offer some runner and rider information, at least for the major race meetings.

Checking stats such as previous finishes for both horse and jockeys alike, and how they tend to do on certain grounds and courses is also recommended. You can then match this up with bookmaker odds and asses which bets represent the best value.

Check out Tipster sites

There are many tipsters that you can find online, whether you want to source tips or just see how your own predictions tally with those of tipsters. Sites like The Winners Enclosure offer a wide variety of recommended bets that punters can use to do exactly this.

Find the best Bookmaker for you

It’s well worth shopping around to find a bookmaker that offers the information that is most relevant to what it is that you’re looking to bet on, and that offers you information that is useful to you when picking your bets.

Most bookmakers also offer incentives for signing up such as free bets or offers for certain race meetings and events.

Two of Europe’s Most Successful Clubs Get Ready to Battle for Champions League Glory

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May 15, 2018

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European football’s night of nights is upon us once again as we get ready to watch Liverpool and Real Madrid battle it out in the Champions League final. It promises to be a spectacular event with both teams having an extremely successful history in the competition. The match will be played in Kiev, Ukraine, at the NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium in front of a fully packed house of 70,000 fans.

Real have won the tournament a record 12 times and are the reigning champs after defeating Italian side Juventus 4-1 in Cardiff last year. It was the first time a club had won consecutive titles and their third Champions League title in four years.

Liverpool also have a rich history in the league, having won five titles with the last being back in 2005 against AC Milan. The Reds came back from a 3-0 deficit at half-time to stun the Italian giants and push the game to penalties. Some superb goalkeeping from Jerzy Dudek and a cool head from Liverpool’s penalty takers ensured that the coveted trophy returned back to Anfield once again.

This year’s final is expected to be a high scoring affair with Liverpool being the competition’s highest-scoring side with 40, and Madrid in second on 30. The Spanish giants will go into the match as favourites at 6/5 though, with the Reds currently 21/10 according to this link at William Hill’s betting website.

The tournament’s all-time leading goal scorer, Cristiano Ronaldo, is the bookmakers’ choice to draw first blood at 3/1, and will be a major attacking threat for Real having scored 15 goals already in the competition. The Portuguese superstar is not only magnificent during normal play, but has one of the most lethal boots in world football when it comes to free kicks. The key for the English side will be to shut Ronaldo out of the game as much as possible, forcing Madrid to use their other attacking options instead.

Liverpool however, have a much more even spread when it comes to their key forwards, with the fantastic trio of Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane tearing apart team’s defences on their way to the final. Salah and Firmino lead the way for the English side with an impressive ten goals apiece, with Mane right behind them scoring nine.

Although Liverpool are the underdogs heading into the match, the ability to score goals from a range of different positions is sure to cause a few headaches for the Madrid defence. Their midfield has also played a large part in the journey to Kiev, with James Milner leading the competition for assists with nine.

Stopping Ronaldo is the key if the Reds have any chance of lifting the trophy and it looks like they may have had some help from Liverpool’s football gods. Cristiano picked up an ankle injury in the recent 2-2 Classico draw against fierce rivals Barcelona, and some football experts think it may be more serious than the club is letting on. Madrid will feel that they have to start him but it could prove costly if he aggravates the injury and needs to be substituted. It would surely open the game wide open and Liverpool’s offensive style could see the momentum shift the English side’s way.

Will the Spanish side continue its dominance in Europe or are the glory days about to return to Anfield? In a few short weeks, we will have the answer to the question on every football fan’s lips. It’s going to be a sensational night of football as spectators from all over the world tune in to see who will be crowned the champions of Europe.