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BEFORE Tony Adams had even kicked his first German of Euro 2000, bookmakers were already reporting that the tournament's internet revenues were beating the Grand National's online take.
The internet is revolutionising the gaming industry, with extraordinary growth forecast for new online services. In Europe, online betting is expected to grow from $55m (£37m) last year to $5.5 billion by 2004.
More specifically, Ladbrokes predicts the industry to take £100m on Euro 2000 in the UK, with around £20m of that figure coming from online bets. William Hill expects to take £3m on Euro 2000 over the internet, while about a third of its total Euro 2000 take is expected to come from its offshore website and phone businesses.
Fuelling this growth is a new type of customer. The internet has reinvented gambling, meaning that it is no longer perceived as the preserve of the penguin-suited casino goer or the flat-capped middle-aged male in the betting shop. Ralph Topping, online betting director at William Hill, said: "We are taking more bets from people in pyjamas. The final breakthrough will be when people are making bets in the buff."
While bookmakers will not release figures, they say anecdotal evidence points to a new demographic. Online gamblers are younger and more of them are women, the companies claim.
Karim Ghaidan, chairman of Ofex-listed bookmaker Firststake, said he chose flamboyant TV pundit "Big" Ron Atkinson to provide tips on his soon-to-be launched firststake.com, partly because "women like him."
Mark Finnie, a leisure analyst with Deutsche Bank, said: "The new technologies are a godsend for the industry that has struggled for 30 years to get people into its shops."
But with the naked gambler and other new breeds of betting enthusiast comes keener competition. It is thought that there are more than 100 internet sites offering Euro 2000 bets.
Offshore internet betting sites have forced established players like Ladbroke and William Hill to launch similar businesses. The established bookmakers are even subsidising customers who gamble on their UK sites by paying their tax.
Even more aggressive moves are afoot. Ladbroke launched its internet "bet that can't lose" promotion last week, while William Hill followed Coral into WAP (wireless application protocol) betting services, and will give away 10,000 free phones.
Other players are scrambling into a market that is preparing for interactive TV betting, which analysts expect to be more important than the internet. Last month, BSkyB offered around £300m for Sports Internet, the internet sports and gaming group, although a sharp fall in BSkyB's share price has reduced the value of the deal.
The new environment is also throwing up conflicting scenarios. William Hill employees tell stories of customers sitting in betting shops and phoning the company's offshore service, rather than pay tax on bets placed at the counter.
Other innovations are also emerging. Flutter.com, an internet site that allows its customers to bet against each other rather than the house, was launched last month. According to co-founder Vince Monical users can bet on virtually anything, such as when Adams may kick his first German.
My money's already gone on the warm-up.
The internet is revolutionising the gaming industry, with extraordinary growth forecast for new online services. In Europe, online betting is expected to grow from $55m (£37m) last year to $5.5 billion by 2004.
More specifically, Ladbrokes predicts the industry to take £100m on Euro 2000 in the UK, with around £20m of that figure coming from online bets. William Hill expects to take £3m on Euro 2000 over the internet, while about a third of its total Euro 2000 take is expected to come from its offshore website and phone businesses.
Fuelling this growth is a new type of customer. The internet has reinvented gambling, meaning that it is no longer perceived as the preserve of the penguin-suited casino goer or the flat-capped middle-aged male in the betting shop. Ralph Topping, online betting director at William Hill, said: "We are taking more bets from people in pyjamas. The final breakthrough will be when people are making bets in the buff."
While bookmakers will not release figures, they say anecdotal evidence points to a new demographic. Online gamblers are younger and more of them are women, the companies claim.
Karim Ghaidan, chairman of Ofex-listed bookmaker Firststake, said he chose flamboyant TV pundit "Big" Ron Atkinson to provide tips on his soon-to-be launched firststake.com, partly because "women like him."
Mark Finnie, a leisure analyst with Deutsche Bank, said: "The new technologies are a godsend for the industry that has struggled for 30 years to get people into its shops."
But with the naked gambler and other new breeds of betting enthusiast comes keener competition. It is thought that there are more than 100 internet sites offering Euro 2000 bets.
Offshore internet betting sites have forced established players like Ladbroke and William Hill to launch similar businesses. The established bookmakers are even subsidising customers who gamble on their UK sites by paying their tax.
Even more aggressive moves are afoot. Ladbroke launched its internet "bet that can't lose" promotion last week, while William Hill followed Coral into WAP (wireless application protocol) betting services, and will give away 10,000 free phones.
Other players are scrambling into a market that is preparing for interactive TV betting, which analysts expect to be more important than the internet. Last month, BSkyB offered around £300m for Sports Internet, the internet sports and gaming group, although a sharp fall in BSkyB's share price has reduced the value of the deal.
The new environment is also throwing up conflicting scenarios. William Hill employees tell stories of customers sitting in betting shops and phoning the company's offshore service, rather than pay tax on bets placed at the counter.
Other innovations are also emerging. Flutter.com, an internet site that allows its customers to bet against each other rather than the house, was launched last month. According to co-founder Vince Monical users can bet on virtually anything, such as when Adams may kick his first German.
My money's already gone on the warm-up.