Betting on papal race heats up
17/04/2005 16:05 - (SA)
London - Punters betting on the election of the next pope are unlikely to make a killing on any of the favourites - British and Irish bookmakers were Sunday offering short odds on the front-runners with Germany's Joseph Ratzinger heading the list.
Both Dublin's Paddy Power bookmakers and London's William Hill had Ratzinger in the lead - at 3-1 and 9-2 respectively - followed by French Cardinal Jean-Marie Lustiger.
Paddy Power was offering 9-2 on Lustiger and 5-1 on liberal hope Carlo Maria Martini in third place.
With William Hill however Martini was tied for third with fellow Italian Dionigi Tettamanzi at 7-1.
William Hill, Britain's largest bookmakers, has taken bets on the papal race since the last Vatican conclave in 1978. The company said that betting stretches back as far as 1994, when one man put 30 pounds on Lustiger, now one of the clear favourites. Should Lustiger win the foresighted punter stands to collect £1 000 pounds.
The Catholic Church last year however condemned gambling on the papal succession calling
The Sistine Chapel; Papal conclave starts later this week
The Irish bookmaker, Paddy Power, has described this weeks conclave in the Vatican as ''"getting to be a bigger non-sporting betting event than the Oscars Hollywood movie awards."''

The bookmaker has been taking bets all week on who will be the next Pope, with Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger the 3-1 favourite. Second favorite was a Frenchman; Jean-Marie Cardinal Lustiger. The betting firm revealed that one customer has placed €1,000 (US$1,287) on the former Jew.

In third place is a 78 year old Italian, Carlo Maria Cardinal Martini. Like the late Pope John Paul II, Martini has Parkinson's disease and is quite conservative. He was also a close confidante of John Paul II who debated with the theologian on Church dogma.