A South Korean casino heist appears to be falling apart following the recovery of most of the stolen cash and the arrest of one suspected thief. 

On Wednesday, authorities on the South Korean holiday island of Jeju announced the arrest of an unidentified 30-something Korean male. The suspect is believed to have played a role in the recent theft of KRW14.5b (US$13.4M) in cash from several VIP gaming room safes at Landing International Development’s Jeju Shinhwa World resort casino. 

The Yonhap news agency said police are keeping details quiet for the time being, except to say that the arrested individual is “an employee of an agent company that attracts and manages casino customers.” Police said the man was not a casino staffer, meaning the suspect likely works for one of the Jeju casino’s junket partners. 

Police remain on the lookout for the alleged ringleader, a 55-year-old Malaysian female casino executive who failed to return to work after her holidays. On January 4, Landing reported the absence of the purloined cash and the fact that the female staffer appeared to have wiped surveillance video before heading off on vacation late last year.

A South Korean casino heist appears to be falling apart following the recovery of most of the stolen cash and the arrest of one suspected thief. 

On Wednesday, authorities on the South Korean holiday island of Jeju announced the arrest of an unidentified 30-something Korean male. The suspect is believed to have played a role in the recent theft of KRW14.5b (US$13.4M) in cash from several VIP gaming room safes at Landing International Development’s Jeju Shinhwa World resort casino. 

The Yonhap news agency said police are keeping details quiet for the time being, except to say that the arrested individual is “an employee of an agent company that attracts and manages casino customers.” Police said the man was not a casino staffer, meaning the suspect likely works for one of the Jeju casino’s junket partners. 

Police remain on the lookout for the alleged ringleader, a 55-year-old Malaysian female casino executive who failed to return to work after her holidays. On January 4, Landing reported the absence of the purloined cash and the fact that the female staffer appeared to have wiped surveillance video before heading off on vacation late last year.

The latest round of the F.A. Cup takes place a fortnight after the 3rd Round for most but for others, such as Southampton, just days after their progression from the last round. The Saints may have prevailed 2-0 on Tuesday night against Shrewsbury, but they have a tough-looking fixture next as they take on the holders Arsenal.

Let’s take a look at that fixture and a titanic tussle at Old Trafford as we offer you some special sportsbetting tips of the 4th Round of the oldest and best cup competition in world football.

Southampton vs. Arsenal (Saturday, 12.15pm GMT kick-off)

With Southampton having only qualified for the 4th Round of the F.A. Cup on Tuesday at the expense of Shrewsbury Town, this game could come a little soon for The Saints. That said, players such as James Ward-Prowse and Danny Ings will be desperate to fire the South Coast side to glory and taking on the holders will hold no fear for Ralph Hasenhuttl’s team.

The latest round of the F.A. Cup takes place a fortnight after the 3rd Round for most but for others, such as Southampton, just days after their progression from the last round. The Saints may have prevailed 2-0 on Tuesday night against Shrewsbury, but they have a tough-looking fixture next as they take on the holders Arsenal.

Let’s take a look at that fixture and a titanic tussle at Old Trafford as we offer you some special sportsbetting tips of the 4th Round of the oldest and best cup competition in world football.

Southampton vs. Arsenal (Saturday, 12.15pm GMT kick-off)

With Southampton having only qualified for the 4th Round of the F.A. Cup on Tuesday at the expense of Shrewsbury Town, this game could come a little soon for The Saints. That said, players such as James Ward-Prowse and Danny Ings will be desperate to fire the South Coast side to glory and taking on the holders will hold no fear for Ralph Hasenhuttl’s team.

Old-style poker players had something different about them. Maybe it’s the sepia that some of the footage of them is now shown in; they’re viewed through a filter from which seems to seep time itself. Poker players of old have become part of the folklore that surrounds the game and that applies to no-one more than poker idol Puggy Pearson.  Puggy Pearson was a world champion, a raconteur and is now remembered as one of the few men who were there at the formation of the World Series of Poker in 1970. But who was he really? Let’s cast our eye back in time to find out.  

The Tennessee Titan  

Born in 1929 and raised in Tennessee, Walter Clyde Pearson got the nickname ‘Puggy’ after he suffered a broken nose in a childhood accident. Despite having a disfigured nose from the age of 12, Pearson would join the navy at 17 and served three terms at sea, becoming a prolific gambler and poker player during his time in the Navy.  

Pearson wouldn’t win his first WSOP bracelet until 1971, but then, he hadn’t invented the poker tournament yet. Yes, you read that correctly. After years of playing cash game poker, it was in the early 1950s that Pearson shared his idea for a ‘freezeout’ tournament with Nick ‘The Greek’ Dandalos. The idea more than took off. Dandalos then took the concept to Benny Binion and after encouragement from players such as Pearson, Doyle Brunson and Amarillo Slim, the World Series of Poker was founded in 1970.  

Old-style poker players had something different about them. Maybe it’s the sepia that some of the footage of them is now shown in; they’re viewed through a filter from which seems to seep time itself. Poker players of old have become part of the folklore that surrounds the game and that applies to no-one more than poker idol Puggy Pearson.  Puggy Pearson was a world champion, a raconteur and is now remembered as one of the few men who were there at the formation of the World Series of Poker in 1970. But who was he really? Let’s cast our eye back in time to find out.  

The Tennessee Titan  

Born in 1929 and raised in Tennessee, Walter Clyde Pearson got the nickname ‘Puggy’ after he suffered a broken nose in a childhood accident. Despite having a disfigured nose from the age of 12, Pearson would join the navy at 17 and served three terms at sea, becoming a prolific gambler and poker player during his time in the Navy.  

Pearson wouldn’t win his first WSOP bracelet until 1971, but then, he hadn’t invented the poker tournament yet. Yes, you read that correctly. After years of playing cash game poker, it was in the early 1950s that Pearson shared his idea for a ‘freezeout’ tournament with Nick ‘The Greek’ Dandalos. The idea more than took off. Dandalos then took the concept to Benny Binion and after encouragement from players such as Pearson, Doyle Brunson and Amarillo Slim, the World Series of Poker was founded in 1970.  

UK-listed gambling operator Entain plc has appointed a new CEO while celebrating a 41% rise in its online revenue in the final quarter of 2020.

On Thursday, Entain announced that it had appointed Jette Nygaard-Andersen as its new CEO, replacing the outgoing Shay Segev, who announced his intention to step down earlier this month. Segev’s exit is effective immediately, although he’ll “remain available” until July 8 to answer any questions his successor might have. 

Nygaard-Andersen (pictured) has been an independent director at Entain since 2019, back when the company was still known as GVC Holdings. She previously served in an executive capacity at a number of major European non-gambling firms, including media conglomerate Modern Times Group and Danish shipping firm AP Moeller-Maersk.  

Entain quoted Nygaard-Andersen saying she “cannot wait to get started” leading the company, with a focus on continuing Entain’s “extraordinary momentum” in existing markets, its expansion into new regulated markets while remaining “deeply wedded” to the company’s player-protection efforts. 

Odds courtesy of OddsShark.com

In the vast majority of sports, the biggest star via popularity is also that sport’s best player. Tom Brady in the NFL, LeBron James in the NBA, etc. However, that’s not always the case in combat sports such as mixed martial arts and boxing (and pro wrestling if one wants to count that as a sport).

Conor McGregor is not close to being the best fighter in the UFC and is in fact only No. 12 in the organization’s pound-for-pound rankings. There’s no question, though, that McGregor is the biggest star in the sport, and his return to the Octagon in a rematch against Dustin Poirier headlines UFC 257 on Saturday night from the organization’s Fight Island in Abu Dhabi.

The lightweight non-title bout – rarely do non-title bouts headline a major card, but that’s McGregor’s draw – should begin around 11:45 p.m. ET and is available on only on pay-per-view.

As far as the world is concerned, Tokyo is still going to host the Olympic Games this summer. They were supposed to be held in the city last year, but that was before COVID-19 turned everything upside down for everyone. The VP of the International Olympics Committee (IOC), John Coates, said a few months ago that the committee is determined to allow the games to proceed this year, but a new challenge has arisen that might force him to eat his words. The mayor of Osaka, Ichiro Matsui, doesn’t think it’s a good idea to have Japan host the games this year and wants them postponed – until 2024.

Japanese media outlet Sankei Shimbun quoted Matsui as indicating that it would be nearly impossible to have all of the necessary COVID-19 vaccines administered in time for the summer games, which could lead to another outbreak. He added, “To ensure the Olympics are a joy and celebration for all after the coronavirus pandemic, we should negotiate with the IOC to hold the event in 2024.”

There’s some legitimacy to the assertion, as the timeline for the rollout of the vaccine extends into the latter part of the year. However, apart from the pandemic issues, there could be another reason Matsui wants the games postponed three years. If Japan were to host them in 2024, it would give the country a lot of attention that year, as well as in the following year, when it is to host the World Expo. Osaka has already been selected as the location for that major event in 2025. In addition to back-to-back major international events, Osaka is optimistic that it will be selected as one of the first three locations for an integrated resort in the country, with plans to have its gambling complex launched and ready to accept guests starting in 2026. That would give Osaka three consecutive years of potentially huge revenue possibilities, with the Olympics and the World Expo providing major amounts of free publicity. 

Matsui added, “Holding the Olympics in 2024 and the [Osaka/Kansai] Expo in 2025 would be a good opportunity for growth and economic revitalization after the pandemic. For Japan to lead a post-[COVID-19] world, we need to make sure the Expo and its theme of ‘Designing Future Society for Our Lives’ is a complete success.”