is sport finally starting to win the fight against corruption?

Could sport be fighting back against the corrupt individuals who wish to poison their respective games to line their own pockets? Encouraging signs this week with cricket and rugby league both acting to stem the tide.

In cricket, first the British Crown Prosecution Service announced it was charging the three Pakistan cricketers with obtaining and accepting corrupt payments, and conspiracy to cheat. Bear in mind that the CPS was the authority who were laughed out of court when trying to convict leading jockey Kieran Fallon of pulling horses a few years ago. Let's hope they've got their act together since then. Long drawn out cases which ultimately fail ruin reputations and make lawyers rich.

A day later, the ICC have come down hard on the three players, with minimum suspensions of five years. Expect appeals from each player pleading their innocence first, and then for leniency. There's legs in this case yet, but it's encouraging to see the ICC impose serious penalties.

In rugby league this week, charges have finally been laid in the NRL betting scandal from last season. Ironically, the player charged, Canterbury front-rower Ryan Tandy, hasn't been charged with conspiracy or sporting fraud, but giving false evidence police which is a much more serious charge in NSW. Tandy's agent and people connected to him are alleged to have bet heavily on North Queensland (the opposing team) scoring the first points of the match with a penalty goal. Tandy gave away a penalty directly in front of the posts after just two minutes, but the other team, unaware of the planned sting, chose to take a quick tap instead and go for the try.

Let's hope football, racing and tennis can get their acts together and follow suit where applicable. Tennis prides itself on using a sledgehammer to crack nuts - suspending guys for a year for placing €5 worth of bets, yet does sweet FA when blatant match-fixing occurs. UK football authorities have handed out some pathetically lame penalties for players found betting against their own team (the infamous Bury v Accrington Stanley game from a few years ago). Horse racing in the UK has recently been beating their own chest about the Casela Park case. It's all well and good to suspend guilty parties, but when the perception is one rule for the minnows of the sport and another for those with a higher profile, it defeats the purpose....Posted byScott Fergusonat08:23

Can Chelsea finally grasp their holy grail?

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Early on in the Premier League season when Chelsea were cruising and looked set to win the Premier League at a canter, their manager Carlo Ancelotti made the frank admission that his side were more interested in winning the Champions League this season rather than enjoying another triumph in the Premier League.

However, since then, the Blues have begun to be labelled an aging side that is not able to perform at the level achieved in recent years, something that has left them badly struggling to stay in contention in the Premier League title race this season and the Champions League best odds now indicate this could be their best shot at glory.

Despite this, the Blues know that Premier League form and Champions League form are two very different things and that a good performance in Europe can easily undermine any favourites tag in an instant. With the Blues looking forward to a relatively easy first round tie in the knockout stages against Danish minnows FC Copenhagen, they know that their real test to win their first Champions League crown will come during the latter stages of the competition when they meet the likes of Barcelona or Real Madrid and the Champions League predictions reflect this.

With the club’s owner Roman Abramovich having always stated that it is his desire to win big in Europe above all else, the Blues know that this may be the last time that several members of their squad are going to have a serious opportunity to win the famous competition. Add to this the fact that the final is at Wembley in London and you cannot argue that the Blues’ squad lacks the motivation required to finally end the record that says that no London club has ever won Europe’s top club competition.

NBA – Miami Heat might have finally gave us a true glimpse of their prowess

by Stephen Lars on Feb.07, 2011, under Basketball, Sports News

There has been a lot of speculation around the Miami Heat. It has been a very long while since a team has received so much media attention before the season had even started. When LeBron James made his announcement in the preseason saying that he was taking his talents to Miami, he not only became one of the most unlike figures in the professional sports but he also made the Miami Heat the No.1 pick in the odds to win the NBA Championship.

With LeBron James and Chris Bosh, Dwayne Wade had finally received the backup that he needed to turn his Miami Heat into a team worthy of a NBA Championship ring. But as we have had a chance to see so far into the season, it takes far more then pure talent and one heck of a payroll to get a team going. Yes, player-by-player, the Miami Heat had the strongest team in the Nation. But, on the other hand, the Heat had been holding to an awful start just to move on to a somewhat disappointing 36-14 record in the regular season. Yes, the Heat is the No. 1 team in the Southeast. And yes, they are still working their way into the playoffs.

But beware: the Heat have lost both of its games, on the road and at home against their conference rivals the Boston Celtics; and as if that was not enough, quite frankly we have not yet been able to see the new big three really bringning on their A-game as a team. Yes, LeBron has had some amazing nights. Let’s not forget that just on Thursday James scored 51 points on the 104-100 win on the road against the Orlando Magic. And yes, Wade and Bosh had had a chance to show what they are really worth. But the Heat have yet to find their right combination on the court. The defense had been week, the bench was among the leagues weakest crew, and quite frankly, it didn’t really seemed as if they would survive long in the playoffs.

Until last night at Charlotte: Dwayne Wade and LeBron James where amazing as they guided the Heat into their first truly memorable game of the season. The Heat was a solid team, and that goes for both the offense (which is usually the case) and the defense (which has struggled a bit this season). For starters, Wade clinched his first triple-double since Miami’s championship season in 2006, with 22 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists. LeBron James was not too far away either with 19 points, nine assists and eight rebounds.

And finally the bench began to work. For the first time in a while the Heat’s reserves gave signs of been alive. Eddie House and Mike Miller are putting together an impressive offensive squad. The pair combined to complete their first eight shots and finished 10-of-12 from the field, that is, including 7-of-8 shooting from the three-point range. If you add to that a very tought defense that managed to keep the Bobcats under the radar for almost seven minutes late into the 4th quarter, then you could have had a glimpse of what this team could really do down the stretch.

Have Chelsea finally put Champions League heartbreak behind them?

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Nobody likes revisiting the scene of any form of heartbreak or misery, particularly when the initial disappointment and the subsequent visit are there for all to see on global television channels.

However, it can actually turn out to be the best thing for an individual, or in this case a football team, to face the scene of past disappointment in the hope that it will finally bring closure.

Chelsea fans will hope that, after watching their team put on a professional if not scintillating performance in Moscow on a plastic pitch, their club has finally banished the memories of their 2008 Champions League final loss at the hands of Manchester United, which occurred at the same stadium in Moscow.

Although Carlo Ancelotti insisted that his players were not bothered by revisiting the scene of their defeat, with a cruel loss inflicted in the most bitter of fashions on penalties, even the composed Chelsea boss must be contemplating the potential long-term significance of his side’s 2-0 win, which came thanks to goals from the impressive Yuri Zhirkov and the in-form Nicolas Anelka.

Just a few years ago, those looking at Premiership betting prices regularly suggest that Chelsea may have crumbled under the pressures arising from a long away trip to Russia and the need to compete on an artificial pitch. However, in the match this week, they looked mentally resilient, physically determined, and rather like the kind of professional outfit capable of going the whole way in this season’s competition. After their win in Moscow, they need just a point to qualify for the next round and look very likely to top their group, something that Ancelotti has made a priority despite their comfortable position.

How Chelsea, and Roman Abramovich, who last night occupied the exact same seat he sat in during the ill-fated 2008 final, would love to banish for good any traces of Champions League disappointment by lifting the trophy next May at Wembley Stadium. On the basis of what we’ve seen from them so far this season in the competition, you wouldn’t want to bet against the Champions league prices suggesting this dream becoming a reality.

Bwin finally making a move in the UK

Global gaming giant Bwin have finally decided to have a serious crack at the UK market. After years of ignoring the UK because of the maturity of the local market, they have hired several experienced UK folk to bring them into the fold. Earlier this year Bwin bought into the Oddschecker listings, but haven't covered horse racing.... until now.

How popular that will be in the UK, where punters expect to be allowed a decent bet is unknown. Bwin is a firm which in the past has banned all customers who were employed by other gambling firms, campaigned the Greek government to set a pitiful MAXIMUM stake in order to block competition, pathetically tried to welsh on paying out an Aussie client because he was beating them betting in-play, and numerous other controversial or even indefensible actions - search any betting forum for their previous black marks.

They might have a massive advertising budget, but they have a lot of work to do to gain market share in a mature UK market which expects better service.Posted byScott Fergusonat18:16

finally, the announcement

Betfair are officially floating.

Betfair planning stock market flotation

Betfair, the online sports betting provider, has said it plans to list its shares on the London Stock Exchange.

The company, which is estimated to be worth £1.5bn, was founded 10 years ago.Posted byScott Fergusonat08:45

the Betfair float - is it finally here?

Peter Webb is reporting via rumours on SkyNews, that the float is set for the autumn.

There have been rumours around mentioning that period as time for the float... but the same could be said for a long list of dates over the past five years. Stay tuned for an announcement....

Here's more from SkyNews's Mark Kleinman.

It will be a quick turnaround to list as early as September, but in reality, they have been planning this for years, it was only a matter of when.Posted byScott Fergusonat13:54

bwin and PartyGaming merger finally on

Shares in the two firms jumped at least 20% yesterday with the long-awaited announcement of the merger.

Party Gaming, bwin Plan Gambling Merger

PartyGaming PLC plans to merge with Austrian sports-book operator Bwin Interactive Entertainment AG, creating the world's largest listed online-gambling business.

The new company will be owned 48.36% and 51.64% by PartyGaming and Bwin shareholders respectively and will be listed on the London Stock Exchange. It would have a combined net gambling revenue of €682 million ($885.6 million) and combined earnings before interest, taxes and amortization of €196 million, PartyGaming said. Shares in PartyGaming jumped 20% Thursday, valuing the company at £1.26 billion ($1.96 billion), while Bwin shares soared 25% on the Vienna Stock Exchange, valuing the company at €1.58 billion.

Jim Ryan, Chief Executive of PartyGaming, and Norbert Teufelberger, co-CEO of Bwin, will run the merged group as co-chief executives. Mr. Teufelberger said his co-CEO at Bwin, Manfred Bodner, is to leave his position and become a nonexecutive director. Mr. Ryan said the merger will likely result in a newpublicly traded name with Bwin ultimately delisted.Posted byScott Fergusonat11:59