ALICE SPRINGS, AUSTRALIA, 1996 AUG 26 (NB) -- An American from Washington DC has placed the first "Interbet" on the Australian Football League (AFL), $250 for a win on North Melbourne to beat Geelong, with Alice Springs bookmaker CentreBet which switched on its net-based computer betting service last week.

CentreBet has taken more than 70 bets on the Internet since launching the worldwide service, approved by the Northern Territory Racing and Gaming Authority. Alice Springs, colloquially known as "The Alice," is a small community close to Ayers Rock in the central outback of Australia where people are few and betting is a way of life.

CentreBet's Gerard Daffy told the Australian Associated Press news service he expects keen Interbet interest from Asians who are big fans of English soccer and also from Americans whom he expects to bet on a variety of major sporting events, starting with this week's US Open tennis and the upcoming NFL season.

However the AFL bet from America came right out of left field (AFL, or Australian Rules football, a descendant of Ireland's Gaelic football, is played seriously only in several Australian States, but is shown regularly on some US cable-TV services). "The guy who put the bet on North Melbourne is part of an Australian Rules fan club in the US," said Daffy. "There's another American in Michigan who has opened an Interbet account to bet on the AFL as well."

For the record: the fan who bet on North Melbourne can forget his $250. Geelong downed North Melbourne at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Saturday by 109 points to 96.

CentreBet can be reached at http://www.taunet.com.au/centrebet

(19960826)

_______________________ Regards, Politics is the art of preventing people from taking part in affairs which properly concern them. -Paul Valery Joseph Reagle http://rpcp.mit.edu/~reagle/home.html reagle@mit.edu E0 D5 B2 05 B6 12 DA 65 BE 4D E3 C1 6A 66 25 4E