Japan favourite to host 2011 Rugby World Cup

February 2 2004

Japan favourite to host 2011 Rugby World Cup...New Zealand outsider

Japan is Centrebet's favourite to host the 2011 Rugby World Cup after the International Rugby Board announced that three countries are competing to stage rugby union's showpiece event.

Centrebet is taking bets at odds of 1.33 that Japan beats South Africa (3.25) and New Zealand (15.00) when the IRB announces its decision in November, six years prior to the tournament.

"The IRB is eager to spread the game beyond its heartlands and Japan boasts the infrastructure required to host such an event so it is the clear frontrunner," says Centrebet's Gerard Daffy.

According to Centrebet, Japan is as likely to stage the 2011 World Cup as Paris (1.33) is to pip London (4.00), Madrid (11.00), New York (12.00) and Moscow (34.00) in the 2012 Games race.

Centrebet specialises in election betting and there is independent evidence to support its claim that its prices are more accurate than opinion polls. Stanford University's Justin Wolfers and Andrew Leigh, of Harvard, found that its odds on the 2001 Australian vote not only correctly forecast the overall result but also provided precise estimates of outcomes in 47 electorates.

Wolfers (http://bpp.wharton.upenn.edu/jwolfers), currently working out of the University of Pennsylvania, and Leigh (http://andrewleigh.com), now attached to the Australian National University, concluded that editors should have published more Centrebet election stories.

Log on to http://www.centrebet.com to view its latest odds.

ENDS

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