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UK bookmakers were the real winners of England\’s match against Portugal

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According to William Hill, up to £30m was riding on the outcome of the match. Spokesman Graham Sharpe said: “It is not unrealistic to believe that this was the biggest betting event ever featuring the England team. Sadly for all patriotic punters it was also the biggest ever losing match for backers of England.”

UPDATE: Nielsen//NetRatings revealed how the day of England’s defeat to Portugal provided the biggest UK audience of all England’s matches, with over 1m visitors to sports and gambling sites.

A William Hill London-based client has staked £137,000 on Germany to win the World Cup at odds of 13/8, causing Hills to cut their odds to 6/4 favourites. “We are relieved that even after England\’s departure there is still a massive betting interest in the World Cup” said Hill\’s spokesman Graham Sharpe. “Even though the event has already smashed all betting records en route to the first £1billion turnover on any tournament we feared that much of the betting frenzy might die down in England\’s absence.”