Betting Industry Turnover 'Not Affected By England's Absence'

Having no England team at Euro 2008 does not mean betting industry loses money, according to Ladbrokes.

England's failure to qualify for the European Championship finals in Austria and Switzerland this month means sports betting companies are likely to balance the books, rather than report an increased or reduced turnover.

That is the opinion of Ladbrokes spokesperson Nick Weinberg, who has said that without England in the competition there are three or four teams who have been heavily backed to win the title at the end of the month.

"If England [had qualified for the tournament], it'd probably be safe to assume that we'd be cheering on everyone bar England," said Mr Weinberg.

"England's absence essentially means we don't stand to lose as much money, but we don't stand to make as much money."

At the beginning of the month, Ladbrokes predicted that there would be a record £350 million staked in the UK and Ireland on Euro 2008.

It also claimed recently that growth in online gambling meant the betting industry in these two countries stood to generate 40 per cent more than it did during the 2004 tournament, which was held in Portugal.