Irish football gambling fans now know the European Cup draw

Irish sports gambling fans who enjoy gambling on football and follow the English Premier League are currently observing the closest title race for many years, and with a large chunk of the season still to play there are still four teams at least in with a shout. It has often been reported that football gambling in Ireland is second only to horse racing, but unfortunately it seems that it is the Premier League which attracts most of the attention and not our own national leagues. The fortunes of the national team however is an entirely different matter. It may seem a little early for football gambling fans to be thinking about the 2016 European Cup, but we have now had the draw for the qualifying groups for the competition so perhaps we should take a look at what it could mean for the Republic of Ireland and the British teams. The 2016 tournament is the first for which the qualifying rules have been changed, and which many observers feel may open the door for teams such as Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to qualify for the finals at last, so what will fans of gambling on football think of the draw. The Republic of Ireland have been drawn in Group D, and although this group also includes Germany most Irish football gambling fans will expect them to reach the finals automatically as runners up, but this group also includes Scotland who may have more than a little say in the outcome. England appear to have the easiest route to the finals, but Wales and Northern Ireland may still struggle to qualify in spite of the new expanded format of the finals. It’s early days yet but sports gambling fans all over Europe will be assessing the possibilities for their national sides and when it comes to the major tournaments it is not just avid football fans who take to gambling on football.