Bookmaker William Hill on Tuesday said that the bookmaking industry "faces its biggest loss in Premier League history with Leicester City just one win away from clinching a shock first title." William Hill, in a statement, said that "so unexpected" was the title chase that it had "quoted Leicester as 5,000-1 outsiders at the start of the season." Now "the loss to bookmakers stands at" some £10M ($14.6M). A man from Guildford, England "stands to earn the highest individual payout" after he wagered £75 ($109) at 1,500-1 just a few weeks into the campaign. He "has not cashed out and so now stands to win" £112,500 ($163,946). William Hill spokesperson Joe Crilly said, "We stand to lose a small fortune if Leicester do what everybody must now be expecting them to do. 5,000-1 is the biggest priced winner in betting history!" (REUTERS, 4/26).
The Japan Professional Baseball Players Association said that an annual survey has ranked Japanese Pacific League club Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks' payroll "as the highest in Japan for the first time." According to the union, the "average salary of the union members on the Hawks' 70-man roster" this year is 69.6M yen ($625,000). The Hawks, which "ended a four-year salary reign by Yomiuri Giants," are the first Pacific League team to top the survey since the Seibu Lions. The average salary of the 725 union members on standard NPB contracts is 37.1M yen ($330,000) (KYODO, 4/25).
