Spain 4/11 For Final Spot

Spain eased into the semi final of the Euros and William Hill make them the 6/4 favourites to win the tournament, ahead of Germany. Spain will now face Portugal in the semi final and Hills make them 4/11 to make the final (2/1 not to).

“Spain were aided in their progression by a lacklustre France side, but despite this it would take a brave man to back against them now – highlighted by the £1m plus liability we have on them,” said Hill’s spokesman Joe Crilly.

Euros winner: 7/4 Germany; 7/4 Spain; 6/1 Portugal; 9/1 England; 11/1 Italy

Top goalscorer: 15/8 Mario Gomez; 2/1 Cristiano Ronaldo; 9/2 Fernando Torres; 20/1 Cesc Fabregas; 25/1 Wayne Rooney; 25/1 Xabi Alonso; 40/1 BAR

Spain/Portugal to qualify for the final: 4/11 Spain; 2/1 Portugal

Further Information…Joe Crilly…07850 518 164

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Avb Closes In On Spurs Job

AVB Closes In on Spurs Job

Despite Andre Villas Boas claiming talk about him joining Tottenham as lies William Hill still quote him at 4/11 to become the new boss at White Hart Line.

Laurent Blanc suffered disappointment with France’s elimination from Euro 2012 last night but he is 8/1 to take over from Harry Redknapp. Fabio Capello is second favourite at 5/1 but money has been placed on ex Barcelona manager Pep Guardiola at 16/1.

“Money has been seen for Guardiola and Blanc but despite AVB playing down rumours of his move to Spurs we expect him to be in the hot seat at White Hart Lane sooner rather than later,” said William Hill spokesman Mark Young.

Next Tottenham Manager: 4/11 Villas Boas, 5/1 Capello, 8/1 Blanc, 8/1 Klinsmann, 14/1 Moyes, 14/1 Hoddle, 16/1 Rangnick, 16/1 Guardiola, 16/1 Martinez, 16/1 Sherwood, 16/1 Hiddink, 20/1 Benitez, 25/1 BAR

Further Information
Mark Young
PR Assistant, William Hill
Email: myoung@williamhill.co.uk
Phone: 02089183981

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Quarter Final Chaos: William Hill Specials

The last two quarter finals are to be played over the weekend as the top two from Groups C and D come head to head. Spain are 4/5 for a 90 minute victory over Group D runners up France whilst England and Italy cannot be separated at 9/5 each in 90 minutes and 10/11 each for qualification.

Spain have been dominant in possession in this tournament and face a France team who’s confidence may well be in tatters after the final group game defeat to Sweden. Spain are 11/4 to have 71% or more of the possession with William Hill. It is 6/4 they have between 61% and 70%, 5/4 that they have 51%-60% and 6/1 that they lose their touch and have under 50% of the ball.

Fernando Torres has filled the striker’s role in the last two matches for Spain but Cesc Fabregas started the first game in an advanced position and has two goals to his name. William Hill are betting on specials if he were to come from the bench. He is 2/1 to come off the bench and score, 9/2 to come off the bench and be booked and 33/1 he gets a red card after coming on.

France are a big price at 2/1 to qualify considering they were highly fancied at the beginning of the tournament. Mexes is banned so Koscielny comes in. The 90 minutes draw is 23/10 with the game 11/2 to go to penalties.

England play Italy in the final game of the last eight on Sunday and Wiliam Hill are finding it difficult to split them. With both camps talking about penalties it seems as though that could is the way Hill’s are heading too. It is 19/10 for the draw and 9/2 for the match to go to penalties.

Steven Gerrard and James Milner are 9/2 favourites to be the first England player’s to miss from the spot if they get to penalty shoot outs. John Terry is 6/1 after a famous miss in Moscow in 2008.

There has been a lot of coverage over Mario Balotelli leading up to this encounter and the stormy Italian has provoked some specials from William Hill.

If he is to start he is 4/6 to be substituted before anything else. He is 5/2 to be booked ahead of 3/1 to finish the match and 10/3 to score. The Manchester City striker is 25/1 to be sent off.

He is also 11/4 to score more goals than Wayne Rooney in the game, it is 8/13 they score the same amount and 5/2 that Rooney wins that battle of the Manchester based strikers.
Match Result (To Qualify): 4/5 Spain (4/11), 23/10 Draw, 4/1 France (2/1)
11/2 Match to go to penalties
Cesc Fabregas Specials:
What Will Happen First? (Bets void if Fabregas Starts)
2/1 Come off the bench and score
9/2 Come off the bench and receive a yellow card
33/1 Come off the bench and be sent off
Spain possession Vs France
6/1 Under 50%
5/4 51-60%
6/4 61-70%
11/4 71+%
Match Result (To Qualify): 9/5 England (10/11), 19/10 Draw, 9/5 Italy (10/11)
Mario Balotelli Specials:
What Will Balotelli do first? (Bets void if Balotelli doesn’t start)
4/6 To be substituted
5/2 To be Booked
3/1 Finish the Match
10/3 Score
25/1 Be sent Off
Rooney Vs Balotelli Goals Match Bet? (Both players must start or bets Void)
5/2 Rooney
8/13 Tie
11/4 Balotelli
First England player to miss a penalty in a penalty shootout: (Bets are void if a penalty shootout does not take place with England involved in the rest of the tournament.)
9/2 Steven Gerrard, 9/2 James Milner, 5/1 Wayne Rooney, 6/1 John Terry, 6/1 Any Other, 7/1 Ashley Cole, 7/1 Andy Carroll, 8/1 Ashley Young, 9/1 Scott Parker, 10/ Danny Welbeck, 12/1 Theo Walcott, 14/1 Joleon Lescott, 20/1 Joe Hart
9/2 Match to go to penalties

Further Information
Mark Young
PR Assistant, William Hill
Email: myoung@williamhill.co.uk
Phone: 02089183981

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Biggest Football Day Of The Year So Far…10 Bets A Second To Be Placed

William Hill are expecting the England/Italy match to turnover in the region of £18m for British bookmakers, taking more than any of England’s group games, more than the Champions League Final and more than the title deciding Manchester derby at the end of last season. The turnover figures are boosted by the fact that the match is so close, with William Hill unable to separate the two sides. England are 9/5 to win in 90 minutes with the Italians the same price and the draw 19/10. Both sides are 10/11 to qualify.

“This match is going to be keenly contested and very tight and we expect that this will drive turnover higher than it has been at any point throughout the course of the tournament,” said Hill’s spokesman Joe Crilly. “Despite the fact that we are expecting a huge day on Sunday, that will be dwarfed should England win and face Germany in the semis.”

During the final group game of England’s campaign against Ukraine, William Hill took 6 bets per second and that number is set to increase to around 10 with up to £1.5m set to be staked in play.

All eyes will undoubtedly be on the mercurial talents of both Wayne Rooney and Mario Balotelli and William Hill are offering 12/1 that Balotelli sees red and 14/1 that Rooney does. It is 6/1 for either player to be sent off. Hills make Mad Mario 8/11 to be booked before Rooney (who is 4/1 to be booked before his Manchester City counterpart). Rooney is 9/2 to score the first goal, with Balotelli 11/2 to do so.

England have scored three headed goals in the tournament and William Hill make England 4/1 to score a headed goal against Italy. They have also taken advantage of their opportunities when they have (not so frequently) arisen and Italy are unsurprisingly 8/13 to have more shots on target.

England’s performances have been typified by their resilient performances while not having much of the ball and they are 4/1 to have less than 40% of the possession in their match vs Italy.

90 minutes: 9/5 England; 9/5 Italy; 19/10 draw

To qualify: 10/11 England; 10/11 Italy

Man of the match: 5/1 Steven Gerrard; 5/1 Andrea Pirlo; 6/1 Wayne Rooney; 7/1 Mario Balotelli; 7/1 Antonio Cassano; 8/1 Andy Carroll; 8/1 Danny Welbeck; 8/1 Antonio Di Natale; 10/1 BAR

England possession: 4/1 less than 40%; 4/6 40-50%; 7/4 51% or more
*settled by UEFA.com post match

Most shots on target: 8/13 Italy; 6/5 England
*settled by UEFA.com post match

4/1 England to score a headed goal

To be booked first: 4/1 Rooney; 8/11 Ballotelli; 5/4 neither booked

Joe Crilly
Press Officer

Twitter: @footy_joe

T: 0208 918 3746
M: 07850 518 164
E: jcrilly@williamhill.co.uk

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Reliable From The Spot? Not Gerrard And Milner

With penalties a hot topic going into the knockout stages of Euro 2012 William Hill are betting on who will be the first England player to miss one in a dreaded shootout. Steven Gerrard and James Milner are both 9/2.

Manchester United penalty taker Wayne Rooney is 5/1 with John Terry, who missed a penalty in the Champions League final in 2008 at 6/1. Ashley Cole scored a magnificent penalty in Chelsea’s shootout win against Bayern Munich and is a 7/1 chance to miss first, as is Liverpool forward Andy Carroll.

Joe Hart has taken a few penalties in his time and has said he would step up in the first five if called upon. The confident stopper is 20/1 to be the first player to miss. He scored penalties for the Under 21’s against Sweden in 2009 and in a friendly for Manchester City against LA Galaxy last year.

“The captain and Milner are favourites to miss first but they have been good takers at club level in the past, Milner more so at Villa but we believe that the pressure of taking a must score penalty could get to one or two of these lions as nerves have definitely hit in years gone by,” said Hill’s spokesman Mark Young.

First England player to miss a penalty in a penalty shootout:

9/2 Steven Gerrard, 9/2 James Milner, 5/1 Wayne Rooney, 6/1 John Terry, 6/1 Any Other, 7/1 Ashley Cole, 7/1 Andy Carroll, 8/1 Ashley Young, 9/1 Scott Parker, 10/ Danny Welbeck, 12/1 Theo Walcott, 14/1 Joleon Lescott, 20/1 Joe Hart

*Bets are void if a penalty shootout does not take place with England involved in the rest of the tournament.

Further Information
Mark Young
PR Assistant, William Hill
Email: myoung@williamhill.co.uk
Phone: 02089183981

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It’s All About The Money…greece 50/1 For Euros/euro Exit

Germany are the 1/3 favourites to defeat Greece in 90 minutes on Friday evening, with William Hill making the ’96 winners 1/7 to qualify for the semi final.

Germany’s dominance is highlighted by the fact that the first six runners in the Man of the Match market are German, with Mesut Ozil 5/2 favourite and Mario Gomez 3/1. Theofanis Gekas is 10/1 joint seventh favourite for that honour and the first Greek player in the betting.

Hills also offer 2/1 that Mario Gomez scores more than the whole Greek team put together.

The match is being built up as the head to head between the haves and have nots and Hills are offering 50/1 that Greece exit both the Euros AND the Euro before the end of the week, while it is 5/1 for Greece to still be using the Euro by the start of Euro 2016 (1/9 not to be).

“This match is expected to mirror the contrasting financial differences between the two teams and with that in mind, we reckon the German fans will be bouncing higher than a Greek cheque,” said Hill’s spokesman Joe Crilly.

90 minutes: 1/3 Germany; 9/1 Greece; 19/5 draw

To qualify: 1/7 Germany; 4/1 Greece

Man of the Match: 5/2 Mesut Ozil; 3/1 Mario Gomez; 6/1 Lukas Podolski; 6/1 Bastian Schweinsteiger; 6/1 Miroslav Klose; 8/1 Thomas Muller; 10/1 Mario Gotze; 10/1 Theofanis Gekas; 11/1 Andre Schurrle; 11/1 Dimitrios Salpigidis; 11/1 Marco Reus; 12/1 Georgios Samaras; 12/1 Toni Kroos; 14/1 BAR

Greece/Germany to go to penalties: 10/1

Goal scored from 76 mins-Full Time: 1/1

Goals match bet: 2/1 Gomez; 2/1 Greece; 6/5 tie

Greece cease to use the Euro before exiting Euro 2012 – 100/1
Greece to still be using the Euro at the start of Euro 2016 – 5/1 yes; 1/9 no
Greece to exit the Euro and the Euros by the end of the week – 50/1

Joe Crilly
Press Officer

Twitter: @footy_joe

T: 0208 918 3746
M: 07850 518 164
E: jcrilly@williamhill.co.uk

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Ronaldo And Portugal Give Bookies £2m Headache!

Cristiano Ronaldo fired Portugal into the semi finals of the Euros and William Hill now make them 5/1 third favourites to win the tournament behind Germany at 2/1 and Spain at 5/2. Hills paid out between £1.5 and £2 million on the match after taking on Ronaldo and Portugal, with a £700,000 payout on their industry top price of 2/1 on the talismanic winger scoring and Portugal winning.

“After England/Ukraine, this is our second worst result of the Euros and we’ll certainly be cheering on Greece tomorrow,” said Hill’s spokesman Joe Crilly.

Ronaldo is the runaway favourite (at 5/2) to win player of the tournament with 2/1 offered that he ends the tournament as top scorer and 1/2 he wins the Ballon D’or.

Euro 2012:

Winner: 2/1 Germany; 5/2 Spain; 5/1 Portugal; 8/1 England; 8/1 Italy; 10/1 France; 50/1 Greece

Player of the tournament: 5/2 Cristiano Ronaldo; 6/1 Andres Iniesta; 9/1 Bastian Schweinsteiger; 12/1 Mario Gomez; 12/1 Mesut Ozil; 16/1 Franck Ribery; 16/1 David Silva; 16/1 Xavi; 16/1 Andrea Pirlo; 20/1 BAR

Top goalscorer: 6/4 Mario Gomez; 2/1 Cristiano Ronaldo; 5/1 FernandoTorres; 20/1 Cesc Fabregas; 25/1 Wayne Rooney; 50/1 BAR

Ballon D’or: 1/2 Ronaldo; 6/4 Messi; 10/1 BAR

Joe Crilly
Press Officer

Twitter: @footy_joe

T: 0208 918 3746
M: 07850 518 164
E: jcrilly@williamhill.co.uk

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Bookies Bashed By Blatter? Goal Line Tech Looks A Certainty

After Sepp Blatter’s comments regarding the use of goal line technology William Hill have slashed the price for it to be in place for the first match of the 2014 World Cup from 7/4 to 1/1 but it is 8/11 that it won’t be ready in time.
The more likely stage for introduction could be for the first match of the 2016 European Championships. William Hill are odds on at 5/6 that goal line technology to be used that summer in France.

“Goal line technology looks a certainty, it is just a question of when rather than if it is introduced,” said William Hill spokesman Mark Young.

Goal Line Technology to be used at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil: 8/11 No, 1/1 Yes

Goal Line Technology to be used at the 2016 European Championships in France: 5/6 Yes

Rupert Adams
Media Relations

T: 020 8918 3858
M: 0784 1011 584
E: radams@williamhill.co.uk
William Hill, Greenside House, 50 Station Road,
Wood Green, London, N22 7TP.

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Spot Kick Heartache 9/2 For Roy’s Boys

No strangers to penalty exits, William Hill are offering 9/2 that England are knocked out of the Euros in the cruellest of ways (they are 1/8 to not be eliminated by penalties). Elimination at the hands of spot kicks is quoted at 9/2 but 1/8 that penalties do not decide the Three Lions’ fate.

William Hill are betting on how many of the quarter finals will go all the way to a penalty shootout with 4/6 being offered for all four to be finished without a shootout. One game is 11/8, two is 7/1, three is 25/1 and all four matches to go to a shoot out is 100/1. Germany are 14/1 to win the final with spot kicks.

There has not been a nil-nil scoreline in the Euros since the semi finals of Euro 2008 but William Hill go 5/6 for there to be at least one 0-0 draw (in 90 minutes) in the remainder of the tournament. It is also 5/6 there won’t be. After 24 matches every game has had at least one goal.

“The competition could get edgier as more and more is put on the line but we feel the quarter finals will be settled, at the maximum, within 120 minutes but good news for England is that their fate is not fancied to be settled by penalties. That should keep fingernails from biting a bit,” said William Hill spokesman Mark Young.

After the first round of the Euros, William Hill can report that they have just about broken even. The book has been aided by a couple of high profile draws but the positives from that have been negated by the fact that England, Wayne Rooney, Mario Gomez and Cristiano Ronaldo have all been on form.

How Many Quarter Finals will go to Penalties?
4/6 None
11/8 One
7/1 Two
25/1 Three
100/1 Four

Score line of 0-0 in the rest of the tournament?
5/6 yes, 5/6 no

England to exit the tournament in a penalty shootout?
1/8 no, 9/2 yes

14/1 Germany to win the tournament on penalties

Further Information
Mark Young
PR Assistant, William Hill
Email: myoung@williamhill.co.uk
Phone: 02089183981

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Spain And Croatia Say No-no To Two-two

After topping Group C, William Hill make Spain the 2/1 favourites to win the Euros for the second time in a row, while Italy, who finished second in the group, are 10/1. The 2-2 draw that was tentatively predicted pre match never materialised and Spain can now look forward to a potential match up with England in the quarter finals. England look likely to finish in second in group D, with Hills offering 11/10 that they do so and 2/1 that they win it.

“There were some who thought that Spain and Croatia would play out a 2-2 draw to ensure they both qualified, so much so that we were forced to offer that result at 4/1, although, by the time kick off arrived, we were out to 8/1 about it and I think our punters realised that there was no reason to believe that the match would be played in anything but the right spirit,” said Hill’s spokesman Joe Crilly. “And right they were.”

Giovanni Trapattoni has only just signed a new contract as Ireland manager, but his reign could come to an end after the country’s poor showing at Euro 2012 and William Hill make Mick McCarthy the 5/1 favourite to become the next boss, with new Norwich manager, Chris Hughton, 9/1 second favourite.

Euro 2012 Outright: 2/1 Spain; 9/4 Germany; 13/2 Portugal; 7/1 France; 10/1 Italy; 12/1 England; 33/1 Czech Republic; 50/1 Greece; 100/1 Ukraine

Next Republic of Ireland manager: 5/1 Mick McCarthy; 9/1 Chris Hughton; 10/1 Marco Tardelli; 10/1 David O’Leary; 12/1 Brian McDerott; 16/1 Martin O’Neill; 20/1 Liam Brady; 20/1 Pat Fenlon; 20/1 Johnny Giles; 20/1 Noel King; 25/1 BAR

Joe Crilly
Press Officer

Twitter: @footy_joe

T: 0208 918 3746
M: 07850 518 164
E: jcrilly@williamhill.co.uk

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