Ladbrokes Halts Betting in Running During SA Match

June 2 - When South Africa played Guatemala in a friendly match this weekend, many punters rushed to back the national team at their favourite bookies.

But a number of Ladbrokes customers were left feeling frustrated after they learned that they were not able to enjoy the 'betting in running' that the bookie traditionally provides as a service.

Instead, they were only able to wager on the final outcome of the game before it began.

Incidentally, this is the second time that Ladbrokes has suspended the betting in running service during a South African match.

Last Thursday, when the score in the match between South Africa and Colombia reached a 1-1 tie, the bookie suspended the betting during the game.

Industry onlookers are wondering whether Ladbrokes had a feeling that a certain degree of manipulation was taking place during the game.

Some experts have criticized the refereeing during the match and the Business Day quoted a source as saying: "I don't think we have an incident of match fixing but maybe someone is asking referees to be lenient on Bafana."

Traditionally, Ladbrokes' policy is to offer bets at any time during the game, unless the group feels that the game may have been infiltrated by an element of influence (ranging from crowd violence to match fixing).

As of yet, Ladbrokes has not commented on the reasons behind its decisions.

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