America: Starting with the acquisition of MGM...

Chapter 7.7. Going All In is a Kind of Wisdom

As the World Cup approaches, a football craze is rising around the world, even in the United States, a football wasteland.

Football, which was never seen before, can now be played occasionally, after all, the United States has also been selected.

However, it was still just a spark, not a prairie fire. Twenty years have passed and it still hasn't spread, becoming a retirement home for many star athletes.

However, the term "nursing home" doesn't seem quite right, because many star players, even those nearing retirement, continue to provide technical support within Major League Soccer.

The arrival of the old gold miner in 2023 brought the spirit of poverty alleviation through technology to its peak.

However, although the public is not very interested in playing football, major betting companies have already started offering betting odds.

Among the 32 teams that qualified this year are traditional powerhouses, such as Argentina, France, and Italy. France is the reigning World Cup champion and also won the 2000 European Championship. They are here to defend their title.

There are also relatively weaker teams, such as Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, Senegal, China, and Nigeria.

The odds for strong teams are naturally lower. For example, the favorites, France, have odds of 5:1 to win the championship, while Italy has odds of 6:1.

弱队的赔率就夸张的很了，美国队夺冠赔率是166:1，突尼西亚300:1，沙特500:1，华夏也是500:1。

In other words, if you bet on China to win the championship, and China actually wins, your investment will increase 500 times in a month, turning 100 million into 5 million immediately. How many businesses in the world can make money like that?

However, this approach also has its problems, namely that the process is too long, taking a full month to see results.

If the betting companies discover something amiss and resort to underhanded tactics, they'll have nowhere to turn for help.

That's why Eric sent Judy and her three colleagues to major online gambling countries. He couldn't just pick a few sheep; he had to keep the eggs separate to minimize the risks.

May 31st is the start date of the World Cup. According to the schedule, the opening match is France vs. Senegal.

Eric stared at the blue screen in front of him. The rudimentary webpage made him feel a little uncomfortable. Having gotten used to the internet of later generations, he found the things from twenty years ago rather unappealing.

Eric is still using a slicked-back computer. It's not that he doesn't have a laptop, but laptops these days aren't powerful enough, so a slicked-back computer is better for the family.

"When I have money, maybe I can get into internet investing and buy a few sure-fire stocks as long-term investments. That would be a good idea."

Although the internet was not well-developed in the early days of the world, online gambling had already emerged, but it had many problems and posed significant risks.

For example, many websites are phishing sites, hiding various Trojan programs. People in this era don't have much awareness of prevention, and quite a few people have fallen victim to them.

Therefore, compared to online betting, telephone betting is more reliable.

With the schedule confirmed to remain unchanged, Eric felt relieved and opened MSN, which is still the world's most popular online communication tool.

Even in China, MSN dominated in 2002; QQ hadn't even risen to prominence yet.

Eric's fingers flew across the keyboard: "For today's opening match, split your bets across all the major companies, and bet the maximum limit on Senegal to win."

If you're going to play, you should naturally play the quick and easy all-in game, which carries high risk but also high potential returns.

If we win, it proves that the trajectory of the world has not changed; if we lose, it means that the future has changed.

So let alone football, even many blockbuster movies could lose all their money.

Since that's the case, Eric doesn't need to struggle anymore. He can just obediently follow his father's arrangements and be a second-generation star.

Warren sent a horrified emoji: "Senegal? Are you crazy? That's an African team. I checked, it's their first time qualifying for the World Cup."

Billy: "The entire Senegalese squad combined isn't even worth as much as one French star's key player, bro. That's $1000 million, don't get impulsive!"

Eric: "Listen to me, the odds for France are 1:1.2, and for Senegal, it's 1:19. Don't forget that famous saying: 'Bet against the favorites in football, and you'll own a villa by the sea!'"

Bordeaux: "Is this your money-making strategy?"

Judy: "Haha, Brazilian girls are so enthusiastic! I've already placed my bets. See you in two hours."

At dinner time, Eric didn't have much of an appetite. He sat on the sofa with a bottle of beer, waiting for the game to start.

My dad rarely comes home today. Seeing him like this, he came over and gave him a firm squeeze on the shoulder: "My boy, what's wrong? You look very nervous."

"It's nothing, the World Cup is starting soon, I plan to watch it."

"Really? I remember you weren't interested in football before; you preferred ice hockey and dancing."

"Dad, college changes people and makes them interested in new things."

"That makes sense. I've noticed you've been staying home these past few days. Have you found a way to make money?"

Eric glanced at him: "Don't worry, Dad. If anything goes wrong, I'll let you do whatever you want with me. I'll take acting classes, learn the basics, and basically follow your orders."

Charlie Cooper laughed heartily: "Don't worry, Eric. Once you get into this industry, you'll love it. It's much more interesting than the financial industry."

Even if you beat Harry Cooper to death, he probably would never have imagined that his son would want to get rich through betting on football. After all, he is a finance whiz, how could he not understand the ins and outs of it?

Now, Charlie Cooper is just waiting to reap the rewards, and even the bad mood caused by the poor performance of "Windtalkers" has been somewhat alleviated.

On the screen, the match officially kicked off as the French and Senegalese teams entered the field.

At the same time, countless people were also watching this match. The French team was full of stars and was greeted with a thunderous welcome as soon as they entered the field.

Henry was the Premier League Golden Boot winner, Trezeguet was the Serie A Golden Boot winner, Cissé was the Ligue 1 Golden Boot winner, and there was also the national treasure Zidane. The incredibly strong French team was favored by all the media and fans, and defeating Senegal was a piece of cake.

But many people soon noticed that Zidane and Pires were both absent, and without their engine, the French midfield instantly faltered.

Despite maintaining the advantage and launching repeated attacks on Senegal's goal, several of their most threatening shots hit the post.

Messages on MSN were flashing wildly.

Warren: "My God, FUCK! Those damn Frenchmen are here again, and who's that bald guy?"

Bordeaux: "Hurry up and defend! Track back! Are these black guys idiots? Why aren't they tracking back?"

Billy: "Shit! Senegal, charge! Take down these French colonists! Don't forget your history! Kick them hard!"

Even Judy started rambling: "FUCK! That guy with the braids is going to shoot again, my eyes! It's the goalpost, thank God!"

Bordeaux: "Is that goalkeeper blind? The goalposts are far more useful than him. Can't his legs move?"

The four men were unusually excited, alternating between expressing gratitude and cursing, as if they wanted to go up and play themselves, even though they didn't understand the rules or know any of the players.

Eric remained silent, for he was more agitated than anyone else and could no longer speak.

On screen, as Djorkaeff made a passing error, Senegal's key player Diouf suddenly broke through quickly, intercepted the ball, and then began a sprint.

The aging French defense was no match for the onslaught. Diouf made a pass, and Diop, who had already made his run into position, unleashed a powerful shot. The ball, which was both loved and hated, slammed into the net, and Senegal scored!

$2 million is in hand!

I wonder if anyone else feels this way: the more time I have on vacation, the less time I have to write, and the less time I have to read novels. On the contrary, I can find free time when I'm working.

(End of this chapter)