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The 2010 World Cup has been a massive success for bookmakers both online and local. A whopping £10bn has been wagered on the tournament across the globe.
Bookmaker Hilton Hasson told the South Africa Times: "Although I had expected the World Cup to dwarf any other event in the country ... it has been phenomenal."
Hasson, who runs gambling operation MBet, said most of the huge number of bets placed this week on the final ranged between R5000 and R20000.
South African bookmakers said their associates in Britain alone handled more than £3-billion.
The UK's three largest bookmakers, Ladbrokes, William Hill and Paddy Power, this week estimated that each had handled more than £1-billion - with most of the money going on European champions Spain.
The amount spent on betting on the Football World Cup may turn out to be the highest ever in the UK, with bets on the Spain-Holland final alone expected to total around 50 million pounds.
"We are saying Spain is the red hot favourites at 4-7 with Holland 6-4. In terms of profits, it's been fantastic, but in terms of a turnover, slightly less than expected because of the freak results. Having said that it's still 1 billion pounds. The final will be massive," said Rupert Adams of William Hill.
Aaron Goldstein, Gambling911.com
