Moscow Millions; Better Late Than Never

The highly anticipated Moscow Millions, the first poker championship to be held in Russia, will go on, despite the recent loss of sponsorship from Full Tilt Poker. The date of the inaugural event, however, has been rescheduled from it's prior October 20-22 opening to November 24-26, 2007.

Organizers of the Moscow Millions were relying on a major sponsorship from Full Tilt Poker, though the online poker room was forced to pull out due to a full schedule of prior commitments. In reference to the loss of sponsorship, the company stated, "Though we truly welcomed Full Tilt's support, the success of the Moscow Millions has not been planned solely dependent on it."

The Moscow Millions has been expressly declared an official sports event by the Russian Sport Poker Federation. Dmitry Lesnoy, president of the federation, said, "The Federation is proud to bring such an official status to the game in this country, and to share this with all people across the world fond of poker."

By labeling the poker championship and official sporting event, all prizes will be tax-free, not only for local participants, but for international players as well. This feature brings additional attraction for poker enthusiasts, which already includes two titles to the winner - 'Poker Federation Grand Champion of Russia' and 'Russia's National Poker Champion'.

The Moscow Millions provides accommodations for up to 150 players, and expects to achieve a full field of players before the event begins in November. Buy-in for the championship poker tournament is $10,000. Poker rooms across the region are offering satellite tournaments to the event, including Full Tilt Poker, who has since June been providing satellites awarding a $15,000 prize package to the Moscow Millions.