The British government is now considering permitting poker games in pubs, starting next year. In order to keep the games at low stakes the government proposed that the daily (or nightly) limit will be about £10, which will keep the game at a friendly level.
Hundreds of pubs have already joined to form national pub poker leagues that will be up and running once the new gambling laws are made. The pubs themselves are restricted from financial involvement with the games so their revenue and gain from them are to be made due to the increased sales on poker nights.
As of next September, when the 2005 Gambling Act Rules will go into effect, making gambling on “equal chance games” (which includes poker) legal in pubs with no need for the a license from the Gambling Commission or a permission of the local authority.
Poker is enjoying a new found popularity, in pubs, at homes, at online poker rooms and most recently, in the new James Bond film, Casino Royale, where poker Texas Holdem plays a crucial role in the struggle between Bond and his nemesis Le Chiffre.
According to the British government, over 1 million online gamblers bet an average of £1,000 a year, most of it on poker sites.
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