Besides shopping and ... more]]> These days, inventive applications allow us to do almost anything, from ordering and paying for our weekly groceries online, to transferring money or booking train tickets. Clever apps like this make mundane tasks much quicker and hassle free, giving us more time to do what we really want.

Besides shopping and bank apps, there is also a huge range of fun applications available to download. We are now able to install apps for games like bingo and poker; this means we can simply play on our phones rather than having to go all the way down to our local casino or bingo hall. It is also much quicker to start a game using a phone app compared to using a PC. You don’t have to wait for the compuer to load, then type in a long address like www.partycasino.com or Foxybingo.com, before logging in and creating a new game. Betting applications make placing a bet quick, easy and hassle free. But what other advantages of using betting applications are there?

Provided you have internet coverage, you are able to place a bet on your phone, any time, anywhere. This means that you’re not restricted to betting just on your PC at home. Thanks to betting apps, you can place a bet in the garden, or even when you’re queuing in a store or waiting for the bus. If you have a sudden urge to place a bet, you don’t have to wait until you’re home, simply use your phone.

As you probably already know, the betting market constantly changes. But with a mobile app, you can stay informed of any changes in the betting market. This allows you to place your bet at the best possible odds and at the best time.

Gamers can ... more]]> Football bettors can now bet from anywhere and at any time, with Score Media announcing sports betting on mobile through a partnership with William Hill. UK users will have to install the ScoreMobile FC live betting application on their mobile phone to bet real time on any football matches.

Gamers can also make use of their William Hill account to login and start betting. Players with Blackberry, iPhone and smartphones bases on Windows OS can access the mobile app.

About the new app

The ScoreMobile FC app, which gives real time information of football games has been integrated with the betting app from William Hill to create the new live betting app. A player can make use of live information of over 200 football leagues all over the world covered by ScoreMobile FC app for informed sports betting.

Good news for UK football fans

Score Media has three basic apps – ScoreMobile, SportsTap and ScoreMobile FC, which have a combined user base of around 3.5 million. The new app is completely free and can be accessed by installing one of the three basic apps from Score media or by logging into a William Hill betting account.

According to William Hill’s David Bazak, this unique app will prove to be quite beneficial for their users as real time information is a key requirement for successful live sports betting.

About William Hill

William Hill is one of the oldest betting companies in the world, established way back in 1934. It is also one of the largest casino gaming companies, with more than 10,000 employees working for it. The company is listed on the London Stock Exchange and has an annual turnover of more than $1 billion.

About Score Media Inc

Score Media Inc is a media company whose main focus is sports. It is known for its TV network “theScore” which provides the latest sports industry news to its viewers. Live sports coverage is Score Media’s specialty, which is one of the key reasons why it entered into a partnership with William Hill.

Phenomenal Increase of 33% in Online Revenue

The statement disclosed ... more]]> Online bookmaker giant William Hill has reported an online profit of almost 20% in the year’s first quarter. According to the company’s Interim Management Statement, a new mobile sports betting app for Apple devices introduced by the site has attracted new customers.

Phenomenal Increase of 33% in Online Revenue

The statement disclosed the performance of the online gambling company and financial figures. An increase of 12% was reported in the William Hill Group’s net revenue and almost 20% as operating profit. Exceptional performance in the sector of online gambling was proved with an increase of net revenue by 33%. William Hill reported an increase of 5% in its retail net revenue.

For the first time, William Hill recorded £50 million sportsbook wagers placed on the site within a week. With the convenience of betting apps, more customers are using mobiles to place wagers on sporting events.

In February, this was not the situation. The adverse weather that month led to a decrease of more than 6% in horse racing wagers. The low number of fixtures in horse racing also did not help the situation.

William Hill CEO Thrilled with Q1 Results

Ralph Topping, CEO of William Hill, stated that he was extremely pleased with the results of the first quarter. Topping added that online growth of 31% in sports betting was a result of smart investments in gambling innovations and marketing. The Sportsbook app, which is available in Apple’s App Store, has boosted mobile betting performance.

The app was launched in February and was downloaded by almost 200,000 users. New players using the app at William Hill were more than 25%. The app was ranked among the top five sports betting apps. Within a week of the app’s launch, turnover in mobile revenue reached more than £10 million.

Topping revealed that the new channels for online wagering play an important role in innovating gambling. They have great potential to do the same. The gambling giant is valued at almost £2 billion after shares closed at almost 270 pence last week. Topping also clarified the status of the company’s Nevada licensing application and mentioned that the process was going smoothly and well within the time schedule.

I’m not sure I’d go that far if I’m honest, considering Barcalona are still unquestionably the best football team in the world, with a solid home record in Europe.

Chelsea are currently on odds of ... more]]> Chelsea are now favorites to reach the 2012 Champions League Final according to Barcelona manager Pep Guardiola.

I’m not sure I’d go that far if I’m honest, considering Barcalona are still unquestionably the best football team in the world, with a solid home record in Europe.

Chelsea are currently on odds of 7-1 to win the Champions League this season.  A a lot of credit has to go to the current care-taker manager and former West Brom coach, Roberto di Matteo, who brought them from the brink of exit from the Champions League after their 3-1 away loss at Napoli under Andres Villas-Boas.

I still don’t think Chelsea are favorites to go through to the final however, and even if they do, I wouldn’t fancy them against Bayern Munich on their home soil or even reunited with Mourinho at Real Madrid.

The difference between a 1-0 and 2-0 clean sheet victory at Stamford Bridge would have been huge.  At 2-0, Chelsea would have been huge favorites to go through and bring revenge on their controversial 2009 Champions League Semi-Final opponents.

A 2-0 aggregate score-line means just a single goal at the Nou camp would require Barca to score 4 (based on away goals rule).  However, a 1-0 scoreline still keeps the game level, especially given the much bigger size of the Nou Camp’s pitch and their best home performances their in La Liga.  Never underestimate the advantage of playing at home for the 2^nd League of a tie.

The fact is, Chelsea got lucky at Stamford Bridge last night.  As we all expected, Barcalona were by far the better team.  They commanded 70% of the possession, completed more then three times as many passes as the Chelsea team, and they decimated Chelsea in terms of chances.  Barcelona had 25 shots (15 on target) compared to Chelsea’s paucity of two shots on goal.

Overall, Barcelona should have won by 2 or more goals last night (hitting the goal post twice), so we need to keep that in mind when looking for a return leg at the Nou Camp.  No disrespect to Chelsea – they were excellent and compact last night, but they definitely rode they luck and they still have a long way to go.  Barca are still favorites to lift the trophy at 6/5 odds (ladbrokes).

Latest Premier League Title Race News

In a bizarre twist of events, Man Utd managed to drop all 3 points away to Wigan 2 weeks ago, narrowing their lead from 8 to 5 points above their neighbors Manchester City.

With just 4 matches remaining, I’m not really interested in predicting how the title race will go.  Man Utd have a huge 5 point advantage above their rivals (who they have yet to play at the Etihad Stadium), however no Premier League game is easy.  I could easily see Man Utd slipping up against Everton this weekend, or at the Etihad Stadium, or at home to Swansea, or even away to Sunderland on the last day of the season.

In contrast, Roberto Mancini already declared Manchester City’s season was over, and they have narrowed the gap from 8 points to 5 points with just 4 games to go.  In other words, they are under no pressure at all and have the added benefit of Carlos Tevez back in their first team, off the end of a sublime hat-trick against West Brom last week.

Manchester City’s 1-0 loss to Swansea at the Liberty Stadium was a huge turning point in the title race.  However, the loss of 2 points here, combined with another 2 points ... more]]> The last 2 weeks have signaled a big, big change in momentum for the 2011/12 Barclays Premier League Title race.

Manchester City’s 1-0 loss to Swansea at the Liberty Stadium was a huge turning point in the title race.  However, the loss of 2 points here, combined with another 2 points dropped at the Britannia Stadium against Stoke in their 1-1 draw last weekend, has put Man Utd in the driving seat.

Although City are level with Man Utd on 70 points, Utd have a game in hand tonight against Fulham, which they should comfortably win at home.  Rooney, Hernandez and Wellbeck are all in goal scoring form, while Utd’s defensive partnership of Evans and Ferdinand at the back seems to be getting better and better.

While the title race is by no means over (it is still in City’s hands if they win their remaining 8 games), the momentum is definitely with the red side of the city, who have a much easier final run-in of games as you can see below.

Title Run-in: Manchester City vs. Manchester Utd

With an average of 2.3 points per game for both clubs this season, it’s pretty obvious that neither team can afford to drop more then 5 points out of the last 8 remaining games of the season.

However, while Utd have a fairly easy run-in of games, which includes Blackburn, QPR and Wigan in the next 2 weeks, City have yet to play against two top 6 teams including at Arsenal away and Newcastle away.

Of course, the biggest game comes down to the Manchester derby at the Etihad Stadium on April 30^th, which could or could not decide the title.  Judging by the remaining run-in, Utd should be on top and be happy with a draw by the time that game is played.

Let’s just say for argument’s sake that Manchester Utd beat Fulham at home tonight (placing them 3 points above City) and that City fail to beat Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium.  That would give Man Utd a 5 point lead (assuming their don’t also drop points against inferior opponents) and mean the title race would still be in Utd’s favor with a 2 point lead even if they lose to City.

In other words, City simply cannot afford to drop points in the run up to this game – especially against 3^rd place Arsenal at the Emirates.  The same goes for Utd of course, however a drop of points against any of those 6 games in the run up to the City match (including Fulham tonight, Blackburn, QPR, Wigan, Aston Villa and Everton) would be considered poor anyway.

The thing I find most amazing about this season’s title race is that City have spent almost half a billion pounds on their first team signing prodigious talents such as Balotelli, Nasri, Yaya Toure, Dzeko, Silva and Agueor.  And yet Man Utd might still edge them to the title, with a new fangled back four, which includes David de Gea, Phil Jones and Jonny Evans replacing the injured Vidic.

Even with Utd’s back four plagued by injury this season (including long term absences from Evra and Ferdinand) – leading to the same defensive frailties that caused early exits from the Champions League Group Stage, Utd are still in control for the Premier League crown.

Mobile Trading on the ... more]]> The latest iPhone app from City Index allows customers of the site to trade from any part of the world at their convenience. Both CFD trading and spread betting customers who have accounts with City Index can access the mobile app on iPhone, Blackberry and Android devices.

Mobile Trading on the Rise  

According to reports released in 2011 February, about 15% of trades placed by City Index customers are through mobile phones. City Index’s main market strategist, Joshua Raymond stated that trading via mobiles will very soon be spread betting’s future. The same view is shared by the company’s clients who have become increasingly inclined to trading through mobile phones in the past few months.

Main Features of the Mobile App

One of the best features offered by the iPhone trading app is the option to check the recent market fluctuations and updated prices. Bettors can trade from any place across the world at any time and can also access the charting package. A big advantage of using the iPhone trading app is that it gives bettors access to the latest investment news in the world, based on which they can trade.

Through the app, City Index customers can also monitor the markets in which they are interested and access all varieties of order types. A special trading package has been created for betting via City Trading. Customers using the app will have the opportunity to customize the tabs on their home computers to suit trading requirements. Bettors can also see their account overview which includes the cash balance and current P&L.

Those placing bets through mobiles at City Index will have access to a large number of spread betting markets, which is one of the key reasons the company has a big customer base.

Although the iPhone trading app offers a wide range of benefits, it comes with a few risks, one if which is impulsive trading. With customers being constantly exposed to movements in price, they may place a trade without analyzing the market. Ideally, bets should be placed after good market research.

I’m seriously starting to question the point in mid-season International friendlies.

First of ... more]]> England’s 3-2 defeat against the Netherlands last night to me just seems like another redundant result in which we learned nothing about our team, managed to get three top Premier League players injured, and didn’t set the stadium alight.

I’m seriously starting to question the point in mid-season International friendlies.

First of all, I just want to make it clear that club football has obviously overtaken International football in terms of competitiveness, quality of games, attendance and commercial value.  The World Cup 2010 in South Africa was a utter disaster in terms of the quality of games, results and alienating real fans.

You only have to look at the FIFA statistics to see that there are less goals being scored in International tournaments then ever before.  This is because teams are setting themselves up not to be beaten – the universal 4-2-3-1 system of International football (with two holding midfielders) abases exciting, open matches.  This leads to predictably boring games (Catenaccio-esque football from the 60s), with goals few and far between, and a lack of shots or even chances.

Nowadays, if you want to watch high quality, intense, end to end football then you need to watch the Premier League, La Liga or the UEFA Champions League.

Why England Fail to Learn Anything from International Friendlies

There are a number of issues I have with making much of International friendly performances and results, especially when it comes to England.

First of all, International friendlies are a training match.  They are not an appropriate rehearsal for a major International tournament such as the World Cup or the upcoming Euros.  Why? Because we continually play our reserve team (which gives up an excuse if we lose), we don’t force the game or play at a high tempo (which is required of world class teams) and there is an ever lack of pressure – something which seems to be our Achilles heel when heading into major tournaments.

England has the worst penalty shootout record in World Cup history.  We cannot cope with the pressure of major tournaments and it continually leads to a break out of individual players such as Rooney’s red card or even David Beckham’s going back 14 years.

With regards to getting “experience” playing the best teams, this means nothing in Internationals.  For example, in a pre-World Cup friendly in November 2008, England’s second team managed to beat Germany 2-1 away in Berlin.  Fast forward one and a half years and England were decimated by Germany 4-1 in the World Cup Quarter-Final in 2010.  There is a huge difference between beating a team in a friendly and beating them in a competitive tournament environment.

Finally, we need to look at the scenario in which England played the Netherlands last night.  Their manager was sacked one month ago; their captain (who didn’t play) was stripped of the armband, Stuart Pearce (the care-taker manager) has a sever lack of tactical knowledge or experience at this level, and we had several first-team players missing.  Hence, how is it possible to judge anything from last night’s perfomance?

Sure, we can look at individual performances and say “Wellbeck’s movement was fantastic last night” or “Parker looked solid in midfielder”, but I’m tired of having the same old excuses that “it’s just a friendly”.

In my opinion, we’re less then 4 months away from a major International tournament in Ukraine and Poland in June 2012, so we should be using this as a rehearsal for that.  As such, we should be playing our best team and aiming to bully our opponents and dominate matches.  Conceding 2 goals in 2 minutes and then failing to score until the last ten minutes is not going to help us in a major tournament.

England managers and fans need to learn how to use friendleis effectively.  You should use these sorts of occasions to incorporate younger players and blood them out against top opponents of course, but then you should select your 1^st team every where else.  We can’t just keep playing our 2^nd team in these friendlies, with no desire for a result, and then saying “oh well we gave some of the younger players experience”.

We should use these games to prove to the world how good we are (yes we are somehow ranked 5^th in the FIFA World Rankings), instill confidence in our younger players, and get the England fans heated up for the tournament in June.  Most importantly, we need to get used to out-playing and beating world-class teams on a regular basis.

4 trophies in his first season (including the Portuguese Super Cup, Primeira Liga, UEFA Europa League and Portuguese Cup), AVB looked just as good, if ... more]]> Skip back to the end of last season and 33-yr Portuguese manager Andre Villas-Boas looked like he was about to set the football managing industry alight.

4 trophies in his first season (including the Portuguese Super Cup, Primeira Liga, UEFA Europa League and Portuguese Cup), AVB looked just as good, if not better then Mourniho after his 2004 Champions League success with Porto when he was 41.

Skip ahead just 6 months at Chelsea FC and now AVB looks under extreme pressure, with a lack of backing from owners, players and most importantly, the fans.

Andres always knew had a difficult job when he resigned from Porto in June 2011 to become the new Chelsea FC boss.  The fifth manager at Chelsea in just 6 years, Andre must have know the demands from the club, both in terms of success and Champions League glory.

However, so far it is all going downhill.  In addition to being challenged with monumental task of rebuilding a Chelsea team which has been so used to dominating European proceedings in recent years, he also has to manager senior players, placate the owner and compete with rising teams such as Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League.  Life could not really be harder for the young Portuguese manager.

However, we still need to remind ourselves that he is managing a team that finished 2^nd in the Premier League last season.  The battle for a UEFA Champions League place should be a mute point.  A team with world-class players and experience such as Czech, Terry, Lampard, Drogba and Essien should not be struggling with a desultory Arsenal team or Newcastle for 4^th place.   They should be involved in the thick of it at the top of the table, and I think time’s starting to show that Andre isn’t up for the job.

Of course, we need to be careful criticising a manager who has lacked the financial backing of previous managers at the club, however 5 games without a victory and 17 points of the league leaders Manchester City is an outright disaster for Chelsea.  While I’ve agreed with the need for giving new managers such as AVB time to adjust to the league and build his team, he should still be digging out better performances then we’ve seen so far.  A 1-1 home draw with Championship side Birmingham in the FA Cup is not good enough for any manager at Chelsea, and after his 3-1 loss to Napoli at the Stadio San Paolo, time must be running out for the “new Mourinho”.

Of course, luck is very important in football.  A single poor performance in the Champions League Semi-Final (against Monaco in 2004) cost former Chelsea manager Claudio Ranieri his job, while a last minute goal from Francisco Costinha against Man Utd in the First Knockout Round set the path for Mourninho to win his first ever Champions League Trophy.

However, Chelsea seems to be a team in decline.  Their performances have not improved of late and now a power struggle between the manager and the experienced players seems to be creating a crisis situation at the club.  This is not just about a series of poor performances at Chelsea, but a manager who looks like he is out of depth and unable to do the job that Abramovitch has asked of him.  Maybe he will be given until the end of the season to improve Chelsea’s performances, however an impending exit from the Champions League against Napoli on the 13^th March could be the final piece of the straw.

Overall, while AVB is a proven manager in the Portuguese Leagues and has won many plaudits for his attractive, attacking style of football, he seems to lack experience running an obstinate, Chelsea team that has become a European giant in recent years.  His lack of experience managing star players and dealing with the politics of big clubs such as Chelsea could eventually be his downfall.

Gibson moved to Everton from Utd for an undisclosed fee on January 13th, becoming the fourth ex-united player under Moyes to sign for ... more]]> Former Manchester Utd midfielder Darron Gibson helped his former team move level on points with Manchester City after scoring the only goal in Everton’s 1-0 win over City.

Gibson moved to Everton from Utd for an undisclosed fee on January 13^th, becoming the fourth ex-united player under Moyes to sign for the Reds (after Neville, Tim Howard and Louis Saha, who incidentally went back to Everton and has now been signed by Tottenham).

City’s latest defeat is their 3^rd of the season and leaves them top of the table only on goal difference.  Both Manchester City and Utd and 54 points, with a Goal Difference of 41 and 35 respectively.

Sir Alex Ferguson’s 2-0 victory at home to Stoke has massively changed the odds from 4/12 to 4/6 for them to secure a 3^rd consecutive title.  The change in the title odds have likely come from the fact that Utd tend to perform better in the second half of the season.  You only have to look at last season (10/11) when Man Utd were 12 points behind Chelsea in October and managed to turn this into a giant 15 point lead by March.

For City fans, the defeat will serve as a huge blow to their title campaign and will do nothing to help relieve the “pressure” of a team which has not won the 1^st division in the last century.

In addition, new financial regulations introduced by UEFA for the following season will prevent City’s owners from spending lavishly in the transfer market, should they fail to win the title this time round.

In many ways, it is all-or-nothing for City this season.  Robert Mancini’s men have found themselves knocked out of 3 other competitions already this season (the Champions League in November 2011, and the FA Cup and Carling Cup in January 2012), currently without two of their best players – Yaya Toure and Kolo Toure, who are both playing for the Ivory Coast in the African Cup of Nations, and pitted against a resurgent Man Utd team who have yet to re-introduce key players such as Ashley Young, Hernandez and Tom Cleverly back into their first team.

Lack of Investment in the Christmas Transfer Window

Interestingly, there wasn’t much activity in this year’s Christmas transfer window.  In total, clubs spent a measly £33.4 million in the transfer window compared to more than £100 million in previous windows.

The fiscal restrictions of many club’s spending habits come from a variety of factors which include new UEFA financial regulations, which will be put into place in 2012, a lack of money under the current economic markets, reduced confidence in buying players during Christmas and getting settled into the first team (eg. Carroll and Torres who were bought for a combined total of £85 million and have only scored 5 goals between them in the last 12 months), high premiums on players and the availability of season-long loan signings.

One of the most active clubs in the Christmas transfer window, QPR, spent big money under Mark Huges on bringing in Fulham’s Bobby Zamora, City’s 25-year-old right back Onuoha, Lazio and former Liverpool striker Djibril Cisse and finally a loan signing from AC Milan for defender Taiwo, which occured after QPR’s deal for Brazilian defender Alex fell through.

QPR currently sit in 16^th place, 3 points above the drop zone, and should easily now have enough strength in their team to see off Wigan, Wolves and Bolton.