
Bookies bank on record weekend of sport
ByChris Johnston
Business press reporter, BBC News
A bumper roster of sport consisting of the Grand National, the Masters and Premier League video games, is anticipated to produce a record weekend for bookies.
The Grand National will attract about ₤ 225m in wagers throughout the betting market, William Hill forecasted.

Combined with other sporting fixtures it anticipates to take "the greatest turnover levels on any weekend in history", the bookie stated.
Saturday's race is expected to be seen by 600 million individuals internationally.
"The Grand National is the general public's race and we will see countless once-a-year punters being available in to wagering shops or downloading the app," William Hill spokesman Rupert Adams said.
The race is set to draw in over 35 million bets with the average being worth ₤ 4.41.
William Hill is also hoping for another big-priced winner in the Grand National this promotion code year. The last five races have produced winners at odds of 33/1, 25/1, 25/1 and 33/1.
Ryanair chief executive Michael O'Leary owns 5 of the 40 horses in Saturday's field.

He is wishing to end up being the very first owner to win successive Nationals with various horses since 1954 after Rule the World, ridden by David Mullins, claimed success in 2015.

Last year, the start time for the Grand National was moved by an hour to 17:15 BST. The decision proved to be a boost for turnover and William Hill expects that trend to continue.

New sponsor
"The experiment of moving the start time truly settled and we anticipate the Grand National to smash wagering records this year," Mr Adams stated.
It is the very first year that the race has been sponsored by Randox Health, which analyses blood and urine samples to discover and avoid illnesses.
The Northern Ireland-based company was established in 1982 by Dr Peter FitzGerald - a keen horse racing fan.

Meanwhile, the meeting at Aintree could be affected by a 24-hour strike involving members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) at Merseyrail and Arriva Trains North.

Tens of countless people travel by train from main Liverpool to the racecourse.
Jan Chaudhry-van der Velde, handling director Merseyrail, said the operator had actually designed a schedule intended at transporting as numerous travelers as typical on Grand National day.

Andy Bell, from Bookies.com, external, stated: "this promotion code is a bumper weekend of wagering and the Grand National is frequently the occasion that sees people have a flutter for the really very first time. The brand-new start time means individuals are back from their Saturday shopping and activities and it is efficiently the start of their Saturday night celebrations. It's best timing."

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