“The public are getting rather weary,” writes a correspondent,
“of the professional football promoters’ periodical rigmarole
under the heading of ‘Betting at Football Matches.’
“Why not make it ‘Betting on Football‘? Here he would have
‘copy’ for every day in the week, as long as professional
football lasts.
“I cannot speak for the south, but, as for the north, it is a
fact that football betting is rife in Newcastle, Sunderland,
Middlesbrough--thanks to the professional football promoter. It
is not done at the matches, but beforehand, on the combination
football betting coupon system, but it is betting all the same.
“Thousands and thousands of football coupons are distributed
weekly by bookmakers among the working men at the big
factories, ship-yards, etc.
“This betting is the sole reason why many of these working men
and others, who know practically nothing of football, take an
interest in the League and attend matches in connection with
the same.
“The betting is not on a particular match, but on a combination
of matches.
“Football loafing and betting will always go hand in hand.
There are none so blind as those who will not see. What is
more, in this case it would not pay to see. Certainly, the
professional football promoter has a great deal to answer for.”