How do you find out that a footballer is betting on the game? They don’t walk into bookies and hand a slip over at the counter, this stuff is all done on smartphones or by telephone.
Betting information is protected by the Data Protection Act, the SFA have no authority to ask and bookmakers have no authority to tell, even if they know a player is breaking SFA rules.
Even if a player sits in the dressing room, and announces that he’s just bet on the match about to take place, and all his team-mates reported him, he would be able to dismiss the charge on the basis that his comments were a joke. No one could prove otherwise.
But, very specific charges are levelled at players.
The betting industry survives on the quality of their information being better than that of their customers. “Are you likely to win at the weekend?”, “Any inside info on who the new manager will be?”, “Who’s struggling to be fit for Saturday (and therefore unlikely to be first scorer)?”
If you are a player, you have the inside line on a market worth hundreds of millions each year. Football has an unhealthy relationship with bookmakers, at some clubs, the betting partner has their own lounge and has full access to the players’ lounge. Many players are big gamblers and some have big incomes. They are both significant clients for bookies and potential sources of inside information. Like many big gamblers, they are offered special odds, not available to the general public.
Let me tell you one way of catching a player who is gambling on football. He is tempted away from his old bookie to one who has become friendly with, possibly after giving his former bookie a bum steer on a striker who was supposed to be injured. The former bookie then ‘discovers’ that the name on one of their accounts doesn’t match the name on the linked bank account, and that this account holder is a footballer.
The bookie is now officially concerned that illegal match fixing is going on. With the possibility of criminality (even if it is without basis), they can alert the authorities. That would teach the player a lesson for leaving, while making money through advantageous odds and feeding bum information back, and destroy whatever competitive advantage the other bookie has.
Does anyone know of any other way a specific charge of gambling on football could be raised?
Maybe the players are all just daft laddies. Maybe the SFA decline to release reports into players gambling because there is nothing to see in them. Maybe you can break the rules on betting but not be punished because it’s a silly rule.
You don’t need to be match fixing to be involved in serious criminality when dealing with a bookmaker. The football watching public need transparency from the SFA on this issue, no matter how much money floods into the game from the gambling industry.
Book your tickets now for the CQN11 St Patrick’s Day event at the Kerrydale Suite on Friday 13 March. It’s going to be another great Celtic night. You can buy tickets direct near the bottom of this page or email me, celticquicknews@gmail.com
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“Appalled,traumatised and terrified”
Were some of the words Fudge used when speaking about Celtic
Compare & contrast
Tgbs,
Agree 100%
Bada,
Vfunny :)
Paul 67
ABB Code For Responsible Gambling and Player Protection 2013
Amongst other clauses:
“Undertaking more consistent central analysis of data to identify abnormal activity both in specific shops and, where possible, that relating to individual customers.”
I would think it is the above clause ” abnormal betting activity” that alerted the bookies to this case.
Jungle Jim Hot Smoked
http://www.heartsfc.co.uk/news/4125
Following the events that transpired on Friday 16th January at the fixture between Rangers and Hearts, we have examined the comments and complaints received from supporters and have endeavoured to ascertain the facts of what happened and as far as possible, why certain decisions were taken.
Some of you may know that in advance of every SFA/SPFL football game, a pre-operational match briefing is held by the home club. This is normally attended by Safety Officers from both clubs, representatives from Police Scotland, one of whom will usually be the Match Commander for the planned game, representatives from the stewarding companies and where possible, the appointed SPFL match delegate. The main purpose of this meeting is to ensure everyone is happy with the security and safety measures being proposed, based upon known intelligence regarding previous fan behaviour and any other pertinent external factors.
That meeting took place at Ibrox on Wednesday 14th January 2015 and all relevant parties were in attendance, including Friday night’s Match Commander, the SPFL match delegate and our own Safety Officer.
Given that there is no recent history of crowd trouble between Rangers and Hearts supporters… as indeed has been demonstrated twice already this season, there was certainly no reason for the police or the two clubs to expect anything untoward on the night. However, due to certain intelligence received, additional police resource was assigned to the game. There was still, however, no reason, nor police intelligence, to believe that disorder would take place between rival fans.
At the beginning of this week, we received the official report on the match which was submitted to the League by the SPFL match delegate and I have reviewed it in some detail. I have also spoken personally to the Chief Superintendent of Police Scotland in Glasgow. In addition, we have discussed the events with the Head of Security for Ibrox and with our own Safety Officer, both of whom were involved in decision making regarding safety issues on Friday evening.
The SPFL match delegate report states unequivocally that the events of Friday night were in no way caused by poor or ineffective match operation preparation on the part of the home club. Our own Safety Officer shares that view.
This is an important point and one that is accepted by the club. That said, specific answers to your more specific queries are given below.
Questions and Answers
Rather than respond individually to letters and emails, I have attempted to address below the main issues raised.
However, I would preface these answers with the following statement:
While we may not all agree with some of the decisions taken on the night, I am confident that those decisions were taken in good faith, by appropriately experienced professionals using their judgement, and taking the big picture into account.
Weather related questions
Q1. Why were the roads not gritted around Ibrox?
A1. When the SPFL match delegate arrived he personally checked the road/pavement conditions around the stadium and at that time there was no issue. When weather conditions deteriorated dramatically, the Match Commander requested gritters to be sent to Ibrox. However, as conditions rapidly deteriorated in and around Glasgow, coupled with the normal Friday night commuter traffic, topped up by the football traffic, it was simply not possible to treat Ibrox as a priority.
Q2. Why was the pitch not cleared?
A2. The ground staff were confident that, given the under-soil heating had been on and given that no further snow was forecast, the snow would break up once the players started to play. They advised the referee on this basis, and both team managers were happy to go ahead on that assumption. The fact that the air temperature dropped, causing the snow to turn to ice, meant that it didn’t break up or melt as expected.
Game related questions
Q1. Why was the start of the match not delayed to allow fans time to reach Ibrox?
A1. Hearts did request that the start of the match be delayed, when it became clear that so many supporters were stuck in traffic. However, taking everything into consideration (the numbers already in the stadium, the external issues the police were dealing with at Ibrox, the fact that the teams had already warmed up, the uncertainty re how long any delay would need to be, etc.) the Match Commander in consultation with security officers, decided against postponing the start.
Q2. Why were the Hearts fans not held back, when the game was abandoned?
A2. Had the game continued to a normal end it is likely that the Hearts fans would have been held back. This had been discussed at the pre-operations planning meeting and it was agreed that the decision would be made on the night. However, with the game being abandoned, the weather and conditions being deemed to be deteriorating, all exits were opened with the intention of letting fans get away as quickly as possible. Both sets of fans immediately turned their frustration on their rivals and the decision to try and evacuate the stadium of all fans was taken. At this time, there were hot-spots the police had to deal with all over the stadium, both inside and out. This was a very difficult call. With the situation escalating, was it better to try to get the Hearts fans away as quickly as possible. I am not sure there is a clear-cut right or wrong answer to this one.
Segregation related questions
Q1. Was the segregation inadequate in the stadium?
A1. Segregation arrangements were agreed at the pre-operations meeting in light of the additional tickets issued to away supporters. There were 14 rows of vacant seats on each side of the away fans, with segregation barriers in place. In addition, the first 6 rows of seats above the Hearts support, were kept vacant. A “steel curtain” was in place on the concourse area. Stewards were in place in the segregated areas. This was all in place as agreed on Friday evening. When fans, from both sides, agitated at those segregation points, more police officers were sent to the area and, I understand, fans were kept apart.
Q2. Why was there no segregation of fans exiting the stadium?
A2. Given the incidents that happened on the night, the steps taken outside the stadium were clearly inadequate. Alternative measures will be insisted upon at the rearranged fixture.
Car Parking / Buses
Based on comments received and incidents that occurred, provisions for parking of supporters buses were clearly inadequate. The weather conditions did, of course, contribute to the problems.
The police are treating the incidents surrounding the bus park very seriously indeed and this is to be included within the active investigation on-going.
I will be discussing the issues / requirements for safe parking in detail in advance of the re-arranged fixture.
With regard to my discussions with the Chief Superintendent, I can confirm that a full and very active investigation is underway, headed by a Detective Inspector, with a view to detecting and arresting anyone who engaged in acts of disorder or violence, before, during and after the game.
Both we, and Rangers’ security staff, will be working closely and co-operatively with the investigation, to assist in any way we can. As well as trying to identify those responsible, we will work very closely with all parties to try to ensure there is no repetition of this behaviour at the re-arranged fixture.
To summarise, lots of questions have been asked about what went wrong on Friday night. As I stated earlier, extenuating circumstances conspired to turn what should have been a showpiece football match into what was at times, a very frightening experience for many supporters.
I have agreed with Police Scotland that we will personally discuss every aspect of the re-arranged fixture in detail, in advance of the pre-operational planning meeting.
We will focus closely on segregation issues both inside and outside the stadium, as well as car park security and on ensuring safe ingress and egress from Ibrox.
Last Friday was not a good experience for any of us, for many reasons. We must all do our best to ensure no repetition in the future. As ever, I have to ask that all of our fans play their part in stamping out unacceptable behaviour.
Thank you once again for your continued support.
Bsr,
:)
I wish I hadn’t read her statement now.
Ach never mind…17 mins to go :))
It looks like Sevco, the fans, the groundsmen and the Police did nothing wrong. It was all just unfortunate and couldn’t be helped.
Funny how everyone on here knew that a protest was planned and that the weather was forecast to be freezing that night.
Another event wiped from history.
Budge’s Fudge might as well have been Elmar Fud for all that statement said. All we got was The Neville Chamberlain response appeasement
Evening all
Just to let you all know Cliftonville play Ballymena tomorrow night in the league cup final
The game is live on the BBC red button on channel 980 match kicks off 5.30 think programme starts 5.20
You reds you reds
Leftclicktic
Thanks but I am looking for the Statement she released after OUR game with Hearts. The one where , as you said , she used words such as:
“Appalled,traumatised and terrified”.
JJ
Prestonpans Bhoys – thanks! I’m walking part of the John Muir Way – Haymarket to Prestonpans and hope to arrive in time for ko.
So it was all down to the snow,
Mrs Budge can now wear her black tights with pride,
This one JJ
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/30312462#
HH
I found this. Sufficient to show the difference in tone and emotion.
“I was appalled at the vandalism carried out by our visiting supporters on Sunday. Having recently spent significant sums to replace broken seats in the Roseburn Stand, for the benefit, primarily, of our away supporters, I was hugely disappointed to witness the destruction of close to 100 seats. Similarly, the graffiti on walls, tiles, doors – basically all types of surfaces – was quite disgraceful and this is not to mention the damage to toilets.
“I have discussed all of these matters with members of the Celtic executive and we are working co-operatively to address the issues. No club should be on the receiving end of such unacceptable behaviour and no club should be put in the position of having to defend such behaviour.”
Weetweetweet
Thanks. That highlights the differences even more.
Celtic supporters are a shower of bullying thugs who pick on children and Hearts had one naughty boy who has been dealt with.
Last Friday, fans who love their respective teams were forced to misbehave because , rather surprising for Glasgow in January, it was cold.Boys will be boys.
JJ
I’ll in the pub after six will get the reaction from Hertz fans about that statement from Budge
Good evening friends.
And a special shout out to the following cyberfriends –
> Thommy Bhoy
> The Token Tim
> Bayern MunShaun
> Celtic Soul Brother
> Billy Bhoy
get yir last man standing picks in noo please! ;-)
I thought Ann Budge was scary in Terrahawks (thumbsup)
The unseen fenian grit,
Wear your black tights with pride Mrs Budge. ..
Leftclick,
You left out the ‘we are the people’ from the end of Budges statement :)
jungle jim hot smoked,
After reading her statement on the game between us, I was a bit sceptical by what she accused our supporters of, a few posters came on that were at the game and witnessed no vandalism or trouble.
We won the game, so why should there have been?
The week before, they beat their reincarnated cousins and not a chirp from Mrs hertz!
After watching footage and reading kickback, I tend to think, this wee birdy has an agenda.
Did she have an office in Charlotte square perchance?
Nae problems eh, Mrs Budge? The match went ahead because the undersoil heating had been switched on. No mention of the fact that it had been switched on 24 hours too late.
If it had been switched on in time the game could have been played to a finish, the Hertz fans would have been held back for thirty minutes and probably none of your support would have got their heads kicked in or youngsters got cut and traumatised when their bus windaes got put in.
All’s well with the world (apart from those ghastly Tims, of course)
You have let yourself, your fans and the whole of Scottish football down, Mrs Budge.
Well, Mrs Budge lives down to all expectations. It is the mindset of much of Scottish football and has been for 100 years and more: we are the source of all that is wrong with Scottish football. Mrs Budge is just the latest in a long long line of bigots who have maligned us. Like Neil Lennon, we bring it on ourselves. Makes me sick.
How do you know Ann Budge is a hun?
Because she looks like one.
http://www.susankortecoaching.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/female-gremlin.jpg (thumbsup)
What did Commons wife say ?
prestonpansbhoys
I will be interested to hear their responses.
I used to go to Port Seton often as a child. I was aware of Portobello and, later, when Long John Silver was a series on TV, I genuinely thought the Portobello mentioned was the one near you 0:-)
JJ
The Hearts Chief Exec is a rabid hun,wouldn’t expect any different.
Happy Birthday Hamilton Tim.
Have a great night.HH
mrs budge’s statement – expected
silence in media when compared to invented green brigade sh!te – expected
stand up for the green brigade
Sponsored By Cheetah – if you’re lurking, urgent email sent to you.
Oh well Anne toeing the party line as well. Must have something on her.
Clown.
KLV
Ann Budge tries to steal my trademarked thumbs:
http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/57408000/jpg/_57408610_57408607.jpg
(thumbsup)
LP
Commons` wife said that she loves Glasgow, is involved in many charities here, her child is about to start school and the family want to stay here.
JJ
Oh well – I suppose when the ole Sevconians go on the rampage we can just blame it on the weather.
Makes a change from a broken down telly right enough….
Shameful, spineless, mealy-mouthed fudge job from Ann Budge.
So much for the self-styled guardian of the Scottish game’s moral welfare.
Makes me sick.
Jungle Jim
I know of Hertz fans who were repeatedly attacked outside the ground and had their bus bricked. Inside the ground the Huns decided to share their one pound coins with them!
Now as they say on here aff oot for an hour or two :0)
scott brown – celtic captain and leader indeed
nfls’s captain
ronnie’s captain
our captain
Dreadful, but not unexpected statement from Ms. Budge’s Hearts.
No word of the Hearts fan attacked by a mob, or the reported smashing of a bus window.
According to her, there was no reason to expect problems,as the clubs had no previous; although they had gather pre match “intelligence” (?).
Of what?
That the Sons of the Devil were planning a demo?
From that statement you we are led to believe that all that transpired was an Act of God.
Poor God, gets the blame for everything!
Does anyone know of any other way a specific charge of gambling on football could be raised?
Paul, the bookies will have algorithms in places which flag up unusual betting patterns on a match. They might expect approx 50% of bets to be on match odds, 20% on under/over 2.5 goals then 10 % on correct score etc.
If a minority market within a game suddenly has a large volume of bets, it will be opened to investigation.
For example Stephen Jennings of Motherwell. A betting site’s algorithms flagged up a high quantity of bets on a player being sent off at any time. that player was Jennings. Further investigations then reveal the bets were placed in the merseyside area, the area he is from. Further investigation reveals that a lot of these bets were from first time account bettors.
He is booked, and later is given a straight red for grabbing and telling the ref to stop cheating Murderwell.
Wayne Rooney’s dad and uncle are arrested. it transpires Rooney and Jennings played with each other in the 1990s.