***Open an account with SportingOdds.com and your first bet will be matched***
Now, we know what you’re thinking – you’re thinking "It’s only January you massive stupid git, what the hell are you doing talking about the Sports Personality Of The Year? Twat."
Well, listen. There’s ages before the Sports Personality of The Year 2006 is announced, so that means that you’re set to make much more money by betting now before the front-runners settle down. Of course, the result of the Sports Personality Of The Year all depends on how sportspeople do. We’ve got a World Cup (and inevitable quarter-final crash-out) to look forward to, plus all kinds of other sporty crap, in the next year.
So, who’ll win the 2006 Sports Personality Of The Year? We’ll be dipping in and out of the betting odds throughout the year but – to start off with – here are some early Sports Personality Of The Year betting odds, with help from SportingOdds.com…
Jenson Button – Jenson Button. On the one hand, the brightest hope
that Britain has of getting a Formula One World Champion. On the other
hand, the most unbearably smug, pinch-faced tosser in
the land. And he’s not really that great at driving a Formula One car.
And Formula One is without a doubt the dullest, most stroke-inducing
‘sport’ that hecklerspray has ever had the misfortune of clapping eyes
upon. Jenson Button to win Sports Personality Of The Year 2006? Do us a
favour. Current Sports Personality Of The Year betting odds – 20/1
Tim Henman – 2006 will be a big year for Tim Henman. Not because he
stands a chance of winning the Sports Personality Of The Year, but
because it’ll be the year that not one single person shouts "Come on
Tim!" during Wimbledon. Unless the rules of Sports Personality Of The Year
change in 2006 to reward lifetimes of bland underachievement in sports
that people are only aware of for two weeks a year then, yes, Tim
Henman stands a pretty good chance of winning the Sports Personality Of
The Year. Current Sports Personality Of The Year betting odds – 40/1
Wayne Rooney – Finally, a sportsman with a personality – and this is
the Sports Personality Of The Year, remember. However, it’s a shame
that Wayne Rooney’s personality is that of a burly chav who enjoys
whore-shagging and shouting. But, still, this is a World Cup year, so
it’s Wayne Rooney’s chance to shine on the global stage. That or kick
lumps out of some poor sod from Paraguay before getting sent off in the first
half on June 10. Still, the favourite to win Sports Personality Of The
Year. Current Sports Personality Of The Year betting odds – 5/2
Don’t forget – the earlier you bet on Sports Personality Of The
Year, the better odds you’ll probably get. Throughout 2006 we’ll keep
returning to some of the names in the running for Sports Personality Of
The Year, but don’t forget that you can check the full list of betting
odds at any time at SportingOdds.com, where your first bet will be
matched. Good luck!
[story by Stuart Heritage]
K G Jennings says
I have to register my concern at the new
vote-for-SPOTY-nominees final-ten list which has just
been announced by the BBC.
The BBC sports editors have decided to permit not just
six, but ten athletes to contest the main SPOTY award.
This is not a bad idea,
in a year which has not seen a great deal of British
success, nor an obvious focus for the nation’s
affections; unlike last year with Freddie winning the
Ashes.
But, what I DON’T think is a good idea, is the
decision to have an email campaign to decide the final
ten people who’ll comprise the list for the 10
December Show. Apparently, the campaign – email and
postal – will close on 15 November. The ten athletes
who poll the most votes will contest the main SPOTY
award.
The BBC may have made a rod for it’s own back with
this latter decision. Email is global, and open to
abuse. There are certain athletes who richly deserve
to win this award who are already in the top ten in
most bookies lists. But some of them are not
meretricious in their self-promotion. Jane Tomlinson
does publicity primarily because it helps her
charities; she’s not naturally a craven egomanic.
Likewise, Darren Clarke wants votes for him to come
from the heart; and not to have to campaign for votes
for himself on his charity’s website.
Contrast with this, people like Amir Khan and Andy
Murray. Both are in thrall to the cult of their own
celebrity. Murray announced the other day that he
wants people to vote what kind of haircut he should
sport. Khan, 20, has a new autobiography out. Think
the webmasters of this pair’s websites will be shy
about putting a ‘vote Andy/Amir for SPOTY’ page out
into cyberspace? Of course not; they’ve 14 days to
make an impression, from now. No one would begrudge
Nicole Cooke such flamboyance on her site, but at
least she has really achieved success sustainedly.
Murray and Khan have yet to have long, consistent
careers. Looking at another candidate: will Colin
Montgomery really feel at ease with his website editor
putting in an heavy shill to ‘Vote for Monty’? This
illustrious multiple European Order of Merit winner?
Winner of countless titles?
David Walliams got a special award for the Channel
swim at the National TV awards. Now, does this tee
him up nicely for a SPOTY final berth (which he
deserves, by the way) or will people shy away from
voting for his SPOTY nomination now, notwithstanding
the Little Britain fan-sites who’ll campaign for him?
Will AP McCoy suffer because, perhaps, his demographic
may not naturally gravitate to the computer to put in
a vote, nor to pop down to the post office to vote by
mail?
In addition, it has to be asked: what kind of controls
and filters have the BBC set up for a global avalanche
of emails? Do they really want to open their inbox on
Friday morning and see 10,000 votes for Budhia, the
7-year-old marathon runner emanating from Mumbai? Or
16,000 votes for LaVon Duquesne, running-back for the
Tampa Bay God-knows-whats? I am aware that the main
SPOTY award is for a Briton…but does the rest of the
world know this? And, CAN someone in Seattle put in a
nomination for Beth Tweddle?
Expanding to ten finalists is a good idea, but the
decision who’ll comprise that list should have been
retained by the BBC Sports dept. editors. If they
want some guidance on 15 Nov., go into
oddschecker.com/specials/sports personality…and pick
the top ten in there. The aggregated list there is as
democratic a snapshot as they can possibly find, in my
opinion, even it it does contain Zara Philips!
If the BBC could put out a statement to say that this
system will not be open to abuse or rigging by
sports-betting agencies, then alot of peoples minds
will be put at rest.