Cyprus first to showcase new poker technology

Fourteen teams of six players will take part in the 2013 Nations Cup. These include the top six teams, Estonia, Lithuania, Serbia, Poland, Hungary and Bosnia and Herzegovina from a recent qualifying event held in Vienna. Host nation Cyprus, Spain, UK, Denmark, France, Ireland, the Netherlands and Russia will also take part.

The details of the tournament were disclosed at a press conference held at the Annabelle hotel in Paphos by the International Federation of Poker (IFP) founder member Patrick Nally. He said that the IFP has developed the unique format of ‘match poker’ to demonstrate the level of skill involved in the game which he describes as a “mind sport”.

“We are making history in Cyprus through the use of technology. The smart phone and iPad are now integral part of our lives. Many people around the world come into contact with poker through their smartphones.”

Nally said no cards would be used. Instead, each participant will have their own smartphone and their cards will appear on their screen. “We are embracing the technology which has made poker such a global success,” he said.

According to Nally, all of the teams are sent exactly the same hands.  “It is a game of skill. This tournament is not just playing conventional poker with the people at your table; it’s the collective score as a team that matters and not as an individual. It’s about the total score achieved for that nation,” he said.

The IFP was established in 2009 and started off with seven founding members, of which Russia is one. Today more than 52 nations are members. The vice president of the Cyprus Poker Association (CPA).Antonis Theophanides confirmed that everything had been cleared with the relevant Cypriot authorities.

Technical solutions for the event will be provided by Xpress HD. Chief technical officer Maris Naglis said: “We are very proud to be involved with this event. The IFP is taking poker in a new and interesting direction and we are excited to be part of it.”

The CPA and its members have faced a number of problems with the Cyprus police. In July last year, police raided two venues in Larnaca and Limassol and arrested 31 CPA members on various charges relating to illegal gambling. Players insisted they were taking part in initial tryouts for the national team and that they weren’t playing for money which is illegal in Cyprus.

Theophanides said: “This is not gambling involving money; we have spoken to the ministries of finance and interior and there is no issue with this event as there is no financial incentive or reward. Also, the Attorney General has verified that there are no legal issues about this competition taking place. He has notified all of the relevant authorities to inform them of this.”

Nally said one of the reasons that the IFP was formed was to use the legal argument as to why poker was a “mind sport.” “Our first big success was in Brazil. The Brazilian government and the sports ministry quite quickly accepted poker as a game of sport and skill. Gradually as we move around the world more and more countries are beginning to recognise that poker has evolved and is a mind sport,” he said.

He also said that as there are no ‘buy ins’ or prize money the IFP was fast becoming accepted and recognised. “One of the reasons we’re coming to Cyprus with the European Nation’s Cup is to advocate that poker should be allowedand to change some of the old fashioned views that probably still exist,” he added.

According to Nally, around 800,000 million people around the world play poker - predominantly online- on a daily basis. He said that in China just one site has in excess of 35-40 million people playing ‘Texas Hold‘em every day. Paphos mayor Savvas Vergas has thrown his support behind the upcoming tournament and said that Paphos was ‘proud and pleased to be able to host such an event.’

The top six nations to qualify at the European Nation’s Cup will win through to the Nation’s Cup in November.