One of the biggest open secrets is that Great Britain is a nation of inveterate gamblers. Indeed, bookmaking was said to have been born in the shadow of the racing tracks in England in the 18th Century, when the head to head betting between racehorse owners gave way to betting propositions from informed men holding book to write the wagers and offering prices for all runners, which varied from a short price for the favourite to more attractive larger odds for the unfancied no hopers.

From those days at the unfenced race track, to public listed companies like Ladbrokes and William Hills, Britons have managed to gamble some US$90 billion for the year ending in 2005. This is a sum that is considered more than the state expenditure on defence and transport combined, and indeed, far more than the yearly budgets for many a developing country. That represents about US$170 for every man, woman and child in the country, and is a seven-fold increase on the total gambled in 2001.

The government has helped to make gambling one of the country's most lucrative businesses by relaxing the rules on betting and by promising to introduce more casinos. Researchers from Nottingham Trent University, who produced the figures, said the changes would increase demand for gambling and provide the Treasury with an estimated extra US$5.4 billion a year in betting taxes. Prof. Leighton Vaughan Williams, betting research director at Nottingham Trent, said growth in gambling would be beneficial: "Recent policies are likely to realise significant gains for the wider economy in terms of economic productivity. More jobs will be created, leading to an increased standard of living. You can't stop people from gambling but the new Gambling Commission will ensure that crime is not promoted and to make sure that there is fair return to the consumer."

During the past few years, sensationalist tabloids in Great Britain have targeted football players as some of the biggest gamblers in the country, and although these are just circulation driven campaigns, names like those of England stars Wayne Rooney and Michael Owen have been thrown into the pot of the big losers, with sums that run into the millions of dollars. This, of course, is no secret because throughout the years, football players the world over who spend countless hours off games or training practice, are courted by bookmakers and hangers-on to use up that spare time on entertainment where gambling is the safest of them all. (E-04.18.06)

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