Poker site targets female players

Betfair, the betting exchange which launched its poker site in May 2004 has begun an initiative targeting female players.

Tuesday will become ladies night at Betfair Poker, with a new pink webpage set up for the girls, where female players can learn the basics and play in women-only tournaments.

Betfair are looking to capitalise on the upsurge in women’s interest in the game. Their statistics show that the proportion of women playing on Betfair Poker has grown. In 2004, women only represented 7% of all online players, now they account for more than 10% (43% growth).

This increase is mirrored in the blue ribband event of the game, the World Series of Poker, held in the USA every year. In 2004, there were 201 entrants at the WSOP Ladies Event, and this number tripled by the 2005 tournament.

A seat at the WSOP Ladies Event will be going to the ‘Betfair Poker Goddess’; the winner of a live event that will be the climax of the Ladies Night campaign.

Not only that, Betfair are taking the show on the road, sending a male model to host women’s poker nights at homes around the UK.

Five lucky ladies who register and play for free online at Betfair Poker from February 28th – March 28th will each be able to invite nine girlfriends around to their houses for an evening of Texas Hold ’em with a gorgeous host.

The Betfair Poker Host will turn up at the winners’ houses fully equipped with everything you need for a classy home game: poker chips, table, canapés and wine ready to play the game that has become a global phenomenon.

Betfair is seen as one of the fastest growing internet poker rooms in Europe with nearly 100,000 registered players, and an average of over 24,000 active players per month.

Betfair Poker’s Ben Fried said: “We have held a series of women-only poker nights for our customers and have acted on their suggestions. As a game of strategy, skill, instinct and luck, there is no gender advantage and women are beginning to challenge the men on the world scene. Betfair Poker supports both the skilled female players and those who are still learning the game.”

• Betfair Poker Ladies Night