The words Lynn spoke into the cara left Carter utterly stunned.
As the club owner and first-team manager, what exactly was Lynn doing?
He was encouraging all the supporters to gamble!
That was right.
But Carter did not think this was a good "gift." It seed more like Lynn alone had confidence, with a hint of bragging mixed in.
This might end up ruining countless supporters.
What if the fans really were successfully stirred up by him and all went to place bets, only for Swansea to fail to win promotion next year?
How would Lynn face countless furious supporters then? How would he give them an explanation?
Naturally, Lynn had also thought of what Carter was thinking.
So he continued speaking into the cara.
"You must be thinking I'm talking nonsense. Or perhaps, deep down, you're asking: why don't you bet on it yourself?
"I want to tell you a fact. I have been banned for life by the betting industry, because I have taken too much profit from them. They are afraid that the next ti I make a move, I will make them suffer heavy losses.
"So unfortunately, if I were allowed to bet, I would stake everything I own on Swansea.
"In that case, perhaps a few weaker bookmakers would go bankrupt.
"You may also ask: does this count as a gift?
"Of course. Since I'm calling it a gift, then naturally I have taken your interests into account.
"Lin Investnt Group is my family company, and it is also Swansea's main sponsor for the next three seasons.
"If you are not confident about your bet, then take your betting slip to Lin Investnt Company. We can sign an agreent.
"If your betting slip does not win in the end, Lin Investnt Company will compensate you for ninety percent of your loss. The remaining ten percent is out of reverence for God. We always have to leave a little suspense for things to be interesting, don't we?
"After signing the agreent, if you eventually win, then you only need to pay Lin Investnt Company the equivalent of five-tis return. Compared with your winnings of at least fifty-tis return, that is only ten percent of what you gain. Very worthwhile, isn't it?
"Hurry and bet on Swansea before the bookmakers adjust the odds. I believe they will adjust them very soon.
"Once the new season begins, and the world sees Swansea's strength, no bookmaker in the world will dare offer odds higher than ten-to-one on Swansea winning the title.
"Good luck to you all, and good luck to Swansea.
"See you in the new season!"
After the filming ended, Carter shouted at Lynn, "Are you insane?"
Yet she was smiling.
Lynn shrugged. "Maybe. Football itself is madness. Without madness, there is no life. That is football, and it is also the road my new life will walk."
Hearing this, Carter continued laughing. After her pleasant laughter faded, she said seriously, "I'm going to bet ten thousand pounds on Swansea winning the title!"
Lynn smiled. "A wise choice."
"Then I'm going to Lin Investnt Company to sign the contract. At most, I'll only lose nine thousand pounds. If it wins, I'll be a millionaire!"
"Unfortunately, Lin Investnt Company will only be able to earn fifty thousand pounds from you."
The cruise ship docked at Swansea Harbour. Everyone on board disembarked tired but satisfied, then said their goodbyes and left one after another.
Lynn and Mo Yuan rode ho in the sa car, since their hos were close to each other.
Mo Yuan said to Lynn, "I'm considering whether to have so distant relatives put two hundred thousand pounds on Swansea."
Lynn shook his head. "Don't. There are plenty of ways to make money. There's no need to invite legal trouble. The bookmakers will definitely join forces with the Football Association to resist this kind of behaviour. If the bookmakers refuse to pay out when the ti cos, things will beco very troubleso instead."
The current rules of the FA and the betting industry were connected with the judicial authorities.
Football employees were not allowed to bet on any matches involving their own team. As for whether they were allowed to bet on their own team winning the title, Lynn was not entirely sure. But with such high odds, if the payout amount exceeded the bookmaker's ability to pay, then the other side could find excuses to refuse paynt.
Only supporters placing bets, people not employed in football, could legitimately take prize money from the bookmakers.
If the bookmakers refused to pay them, they would suffer a massive blow to their credibility and could end up facing lawsuits instead.
At this stage, it was understandable that the bookmakers did not rate Swansea highly.
The average age of Swansea's first team was under twenty. They were practically a group of child soldiers.
Lynn had no managerial experience either. He was also a rookie in the coaching industry.
Whether a group of unfamiliar players brought together could form a fighting unit still needed to be seen.
Add to that Swansea's failed promotion push last season, and no matter how one looked at it, it was difficult to believe Swansea could achieve much in the new season.
So bookmakers had even listed Swansea among the relegation candidates.
Because of that, the odds on Swansea winning promotion or taking the title were shockingly high.
The Third Division had twenty-four teams, with four promotion spots and two relegation places.
The top three would be promoted directly to the Second Division, while the teams ranked fourth to seventh would enter the play-offs for the final promotion place.
In other words, to win the title, Swansea would have to stand above all the others. To win promotion, they at least had to enter the top seven.
Among twenty-four teams, the minimum requirent was to be better than seventeen of them.
That was naturally extrely difficult.
...
The next day, after BBC Wales reported Swansea's team outing at sea, public opinion split completely into two extres.
Led by ITV Wales, the faction headed by David Livingstone fiercely attacked Lynn's rule.
Including Golden Radio and the Western Mail, three mainstream dia outlets harshly criticized Lynn.
On one hand, they believed Lynn was overturning tradition. He truly was treating the club like a toy.
He was a rich young heir who had spent money picking up a pile of players from the "rubbish heap," and was now building a playboy club.
Swansea City knew how to play around and have fun.
The only question was whether they knew how to play football.
At the sa ti, they urged supporters to remain restrained and not be bewitched by Lynn into betting on Swansea. Such a thing was risky by nature.
On the other side, led by BBC Wales, along with the South Wales Argus, the South Wales Evening Post, and the radio station Voice of Swansea, they gave Lynn their full support.
Voice of Swansea sports presenter William Randall spoke passionately to all his listeners.
"If you are a Swansea supporter, will you go mad together with Lynn?
"I will!
"This is football!
"Football without passion and madness is worthless!
"Swansea's gift — I accept it.
"After work, I will bet five hundred pounds on Swansea winning the league title. Then I will lock the betting slip in a safe and take it out next sumr.
"Hopefully, I'll be able to use the winnings to complete my dream trip around the world!"
A wave of betting swept through Swansea.
Supporters were not absolutely rational people to begin with. If soone were calm to the point of freezing, would they ever fall in love with football?
Football was feverish, passionate, unreasonable.
That was exactly why it possessed such great charm.
Supporters were the sa.
Turn left, buy a betting slip, and stake money on their beloved club winning the title or being promoted to the Second Division. Tens, hundreds, or even thousands of pounds.
Then turn right, go to Lin Investnt Company, and sign an agreent. Even if the bet did not win, the loss would still be bearable.
This was actually a promotional strategy by Lynn.
First, combined with Lin Investnt Company's insurance-style contract, more supporters would bet on Swansea. After placing their bets, they would continue paying attention to Swansea.
That would bring stable growth to the supporter base.
Second, it would bring custors to Lin Investnt Company, giving his family's business an opportunity to bind clients and expand its other operations.
What he was doing was, in effect, adding a guaranteed ten-tis leverage to the money in the supporters' hands.
In just two short days, Swansea's title and promotion odds dropped sharply.
The bookmakers panicked.
There was no helping it. Swansea's odds were simply too high.
Putting aside small numbers, if ten thousand people placed bets at an average of one hundred pounds each, that would be one million pounds in total stakes.
If Swansea won the title, the payout would be around one hundred million pounds.
No bookmaker could bear that.
After all, across the entire Third Division, the total amount staked on the title and promotion markets might not even reach twenty million pounds.
Because of this, they had no choice but to cut the odds.
Before the Third Division had even kicked off, and before Swansea had played a single competitive match, the bookmakers had already shortened Swansea's odds by more than tenfold.
Even so, many supporters were still willing to keep putting money on Swansea.
A small flutter made things more enjoyable.
Before the Third Division season began, Lynn made a trip to London to attend a Football Association hearing.
First, the lifeti ban imposed on him three months earlier was revoked. However, the FA also gave him a final warning: he was not to rush onto the pitch in any way again and disrupt a match.
Lynn was now a manager.
He had no ti to go watch matches at other grounds anyway.
Even if he did, it would only be to observe opponents or study players. Naturally, he would not rush onto the pitch again.
At the sa ti, FA officials also warned him that he was not to use dia channels again to incite supporters to buy betting slips.
Lynn agreed to that as well.
Before leaving London, The Sun and The Daily Telegraph both wanted to interview him, but Lynn refused.
He was now the most talked-about manager in the lower leagues of English football.
He was like a star, always doing the unexpected. Although his managerial ability had still not been recognized, he was surrounded by news.
Whether it was a farce in other people's eyes, or a very avant-garde, stylish "gang" in the eyes of young people, this Swansea manager had already attracted widespread attention.
Lynn had no good feelings toward the dia.
He knew that in the eyes of many dia outlets, he was a clown seeking attention, so there was no need for him to attach himself to them.
Once he had enough capital, he would do exactly as his father said: ta the countless dogs in the dia industry, rather than be frightened by them.
...
August 7.
The opening match of the new Third Division season.
Enemies t on a narrow road.
Forr Swansea manager Ray Kennedy led Barnet to the Liberty Stadium.
War on the Third Division battlefield was on the brink of eruption!
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