Outsiders, the FBI, Trocadero and more | My week in iGaming #19

Hearty apologies to My week devotees; this is the first blog of the year. I promise to do better in future, but in the meantime some thoughts and ruminations on gambling and related stories that caught my eye recently (and not so recently).

Now that’s what you call an outsider!

In a story to warm the hearts of gamblers right across the country – or indeed anyone really – remember the name ‘Blowers’. Blowers is a horse and on 18 December last year at Exeter, Blowers romped to victory as a 300/1 outsider! Yep, you read that correctly, 300/1. I haven’t added a zero.

A 300/1 winner set a new record for an outsider winning a race on a British track, beating the record set at Kelso by Equinoctial at 250/1 in 1990. There have, however, been two 300/1 winners in Ireland in 2020 and 2022. 

Winning jockey a fill-in

In an interesting twist to this little tale Blowers was being ridden by a replacement jockey, James Best, who was filling in for Ella Herbison who had missed her flight from Ireland and who phoned Best to see if he wanted to fill in for her for the first race that day at Exeter. The owners and trainer, Nigel Hawke were happy with Ella’s suggestion for a substitute rider and everything fell nicely into place. The rest, as they say, is history. The 5/4 favourite, On The Bayou, managed to come in second in the 12 horse race. 

Other sporting outsider triumphs

Talking of outsiders winning, there was no year like 2016 for high profile outsider triumphs. Leicester City won the Premier League having started the season at 5,000/1. In Australia the Western Bulldogs won the Australian rules football premiership having gone into the 8-team finals series at 67/1. While in the US the Chicago Cubs may have been favourites for the World Series before the season started, but when they did win they ended a 108-year drought.

The onus is on you

In the US the FBI has issued a public service announcement (without guitar) about illegal gambling. 

“Individuals engaged in illegal gambling risk funding organised crime activity and becoming vulnerable to violence, extortion, and fraud. Organised crime groups run illegal gambling operations, including online sportsbooks, to generate revenue for other criminal activities, such as human, drug, and weapons trafficking.”

“These illegal sportsbooks and online gaming sites have significant consequences for the American public, the U.S. economy, and the integrity of sports betting in the US,” read the announcement. 

The FBI made it clear that the responsibility for NOT playing at illegal sites sits with players: 

“It is each bettor’s responsibility to play with a licensed and regulated sportsbook operator.” The statement continued. 

Really? Is that fair? Perhaps if law enforcement agencies (the world over) were a bit more proficient in their duties they wouldn’t be turning the guilt trip onto members of the public – many of whom are actually unwitting when it comes to playing black market sites.

The American Gaming Association estimates that $673.6bn is staked annually via unregulated channels.

Here's a random slot I came across recently from Nolimit City that I really like:

Name:

Supersized

Developer:

Nolimit City

RTP:

96.07%

Max payout:

12,345x stake

Volatility:

High

Reels:

5

Win lines:

259

Theme:

Food

Release date:

10th Feb 2026

Play Supersized here:

Whoops!

In late 2025 the Estonian government and gambling regulators in the Baltic state made a long-term pledge to lower gambling taxes on local licence holders. What happened next, though, came as a surprise. The plan was to reduce the tax by 0.5% over 4 years, taking it from 6% to 4%.

However, come the start of 2026 and WHOOOSH! – the Ministry of Finance had mistakenly completely exempted online casinos from the year’s tax plan. A mix-up between ‘games of chance’ and ‘skill games’ was cited as the reason for the error.

The Ministry caught and fixed the error fairly promptly, but not before a few red faces had to mutter some apologies.

And then there were none…

Only officially opened in 2023, the Valley Greyhound Stadium in Caerphilly is the last remaining greyhound track in Wales. But its days are numbered. 

As a sport greyhound racing has been struggling in recent years, slowly probably dying, truth be told. But its demise is being accelerated by the attention and campaigning of wokesters, animal rights activists, government pen-pushers and the normal unwashed protest rent-a-mob.

Killjoys, the lot of them.

Having waded through digital reams of government and civil service speak on the Senedd Cymru (Welsh Government) website I came across what looks like it might be a definitive-ish closure date (or as definitive-ish as you'll get out of the civil service):  

‘Rhys ab Owen aimed to bring forward the commencement of the ban to no later than 1 April 2027. As drafted the Bill provides that the ban would take effect no sooner than 1 April 2027, but no later than 1 April 2030.’ 

That settles it then – a 3-year window. Very definitive, that.

What was once a good old-fashioned working class night out has been decimated in the name of… something. There are still a few tracks active but track-wise and attendance-wise, it’s a sliver of a shadow of what it once was. Within a few years greyhound racing will be confined to the memories of people of a certain age. Good memories though. 

Ok, they're not greyhounds but on the subject of dogs… 

Name:

Diamond Doggies

Developer:

Red Tiger Gaming

RTP:

96.00%

Max payout:

10,000x stake

Volatility:

High

Reels:

5

Win lines:

20

Theme:

Animal, Luxury

Release date:

14th Nov 2024

Play Diamond Doggies here:

Name:

Dog Days

Developer:

Games Global

RTP:

96.00%

Max payout:

2,500x stake

Volatility:

Medium

Reels:

5

Win lines:

20

Theme:

Animal

Release date:

28th Jun 2023

Play Dog Days here:

Name:

Dog Town Deal

Developer:

Quickspin

RTP:

96.15%

Max payout:

1,213x stake

Volatility:

Low

Reels:

5

Win lines:

20

Theme:

Animal

Release date:

24th Apr 2023

Play Dog Town Deal here:

A long, long wait

Still on the subject of Wales and politicians spare a thought for Craig Williams. Remember him? A former parliamentary private secretary to Rishi Sunak and MP for Montgomeryshire, Williams had his collar felt after becoming embroiled in a betting scandal leading up to the 2024 General Election. Did he make use of or pass on any information about the proposed date of the election for financial gain? Did he have a wager on it with some prior knowledge from his boss? 

It’s going to be quite some time before we find out because Williams’ trial won’t be until January 2028! That’s 3 and a half years after the alleged offence and over 2 years since he was charged. Most MPs aren’t exactly held in high esteem these days, but this kind of wait for a trial seems both ridiculous and unfair. Is '3 years' a Welsh thing of some kind? 

Brighter lights, bigger city?

Piccadilly Circus, in the heart of London’s West End, is about to undergo a major transformation with the opening of a 2-storey, 24-hour casino-restaurant. The famous Trocadero building will undergo a serious makeover by Genting Casinos UK. Genting CFO, James Axelby said the conversion could create up to 350 jobs. 

The Soho Society objected to the transformation, suggesting the change would "represent a massive intensification of gambling and alcohol-led activity" – a claim which makes you wonder whether the Society actually knows anything about the history of that part of London.

In 2020 plans were approved to convert the Trocadero into a mosque. It seems that the old maxim about things never sitting still for long in London is true. 

Well, one way of getting to the Trocadero is by tube…

Name:

London Tube

Developer:

Red Tiger Gaming

RTP:

95.70%

Max payout:

6,000x stake

Volatility:

Medium

Reels:

5

Win lines:

1,024

Theme:

Adventure

Release date:

13th Jul 2023

Play London Tube here:

Thomas Frank

Well, I wasn’t happy when that club from the other corner of Middlesex, Tottenham Hostpud, nicked our manager last summer – though it has worked quite well for Brentford since the articulate, thoughtful Dane’s departure. 

But I knew this would happen. Back on 29 July last year I wrote in these despatches: 

‘I fear a short-ish, bruising experience for the hugely likeable Thomas Frank at Tottenham. It’s really not his kind of place. But he’ll come out of it with a nice few quid in the bank.’ 

I should have put a bet on it.