World Series of Poker Africa
The World Series of Poker Africa (WSOPA) is the second expansion effort of World Series of Poker-branded poker tournaments outside the United States. Since 1970, participants had to travel to Las Vegas if they wanted to compete in the World Series of Poker (WSOP). Although the WSOP started holding circuit events in 2005 in other states, the main tournaments, which awarded bracelets to the winners, were exclusively held in Las Vegas. In 2007, the inaugural World Series of Poker Europe marked the first time that a WSOP bracelet was awarded outside Las Vegas. In 2010, the WSOP expanded overseas once again, only this time to Gauteng, South Africa. While the WSOPE awarded bracelets, the WSOPA was considered a circuit event with the winners receiving Championship Rings instead of bracelets. The WSOPA did not occur in 2011, but the series of tournaments resumed in 2012.
2007 World Series of Poker
Also this year, KEM Plastic Playing Cards were once again used for the events, rather than Copag brand plastic playing cards, which were used during the 2005 and 2006 World Series of Poker.The $10,000 No Limit Hold'em Main Event began on July 6 with the first of four separate starting days. 6,358 players entered, 2,415 fewer than in 2006. This is the first time since 1992 that the Main Event experienced a reduction in participants. As the total number of registrants for the 2007 WSOP set a record at 54,288 with a total prize pool of $159,796,918 ($59,784,954 for the Main Event), the decrease in the number of participants in the Main Event has been attributed to a recent law that limits Internet gambling. As a result of this law, Harrah's did not allow online poker websites to directly purchase Main Event seats and offer them as prizes, if the sites conducted business with US citizens. Online entries to the Main Event that were won as prizes on Internet poker sites were a substantial contributor to the dramatic growth the Main Event seen in 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006. The reduced field also meant a nearly one-third reduction in the Main Event's grand prize, from the record $12 million (US) in 2006 to $8.25 million.