Football’s share of Russia’s sports betting market fell in 2015 but the beautiful game remains by far the most wagered-on sport.

According to figures released by Russian gambling firm First Gaming, which operates under the Rub90 brand, football accounted for 40% of all sports wagering expenditure in 2015, down from 46% in 2014. Rub90 attributed the decline to the fact that 2015 lacked a major football tourney like the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

Basketball claimed 18.35% of sports wagers last year, narrowly edging out tennis at 18.19%, while volleyball and ice hockey tied at 10.13%.

In terms of the sports league that generated the most wagering, the NBA ranked first with 3.87% of total betting handle. The Continental Hockey League ranked second at 3.67%, while the Football Champions League claimed third place with 3.24%.

Irish betting operator Paddy Power has been hit with nearly £310k in fines and penalties following a UK Gambling Commission probe into the company’s anti-money-laundering and know-your-customer practices.

On Monday, the UKGC released a statement detailing “failures in anti-money laundering controls” at Paddy’s online and land-based betting businesses. The UKGC said it was spotlighting Paddy’s “serious failings” in the hope that other UK-licensed operators would take note and avoid a similar trip to the regulatory woodshed.

In the first case detailed by the UKGC, Paddy’s retail operations were slammed for not properly ascertaining the source of the funds a high-value customer was wagering via fixed-odds betting terminals (FOBT).

Queried on the origins of his wealth, the customer claimed to own a number of restaurants, an assertion the staff reportedly took at face value, which makes you wonder how they might have responded had he claimed to own a chain of Irish-themed betting shops.

Irish betting operator Paddy Power has been hit with nearly £310k in fines and penalties following a UK Gambling Commission probe into the company’s anti-money-laundering and know-your-customer practices.

On Monday, the UKGC released a statement detailing “failures in anti-money laundering controls” at Paddy’s online and land-based betting businesses. The UKGC said it was spotlighting Paddy’s “serious failings” in the hope that other UK-licensed operators would take note and avoid a similar trip to the regulatory woodshed.

In the first case detailed by the UKGC, Paddy’s retail operations were slammed for not properly ascertaining the source of the funds a high-value customer was wagering via fixed-odds betting terminals (FOBT).

Queried on the origins of his wealth, the customer claimed to own a number of restaurants, an assertion the staff reportedly took at face value, which makes you wonder how they might have responded had he claimed to own a chain of Irish-themed betting shops.