Irish bookmaker PaddyPower.com has withdrawn a specials bet that offered odds of 12/1 that the new President-elect of the United States, Barack Obama, would not finish his first term in office.
The bookmaker received several complaints about the nature of the bet, which stated that Obama would not complete his first term in office for whatever reason including being killed by an assassin.
According to The Irish World newspaper, it is believed that PaddyPower.com will honour existing bets on whether Obama will complete his first four-year term but restrict new punters from placing similar wagers.
In its place, PaddyPower.com is offering a range of President Obama Specials to online and land-based punters including odds of 6/1 that Internet gambling will be legalised. In addition, the bookmaker is giving ods of 12/1 on the legalisaton of marijuana, 20/1 for a total ban on capital punishment or 500/1 for the discovery of aliens on Mars.
Similarly, UK-based sportsbook WilliamHill.co.uk issued a statement yesterday confirming that it would not be offering odds on an Obama assassination under any circumstances after receiving over 100 requests from gamblers.
“We understand the reasons that people may be requesting odds about Barack Obama failing to see out his term of office but we have no interest whatsoever in betting on the possible death or serious injury of any politician (or anyone else for that matter) in any circumstances,” said Graham Sharpe, Spokesperson for William Hill.
