MOSCOW, March 12 (RIA Novosti) – As cardinals gathered in the Vatican on Tuesday to elect a new pope, bookmakers appeared as uncertain as everyone else as to who would emerge as leader of the world’s 1.2 billion baptized Catholics.
Cardinals Angelo Scola of Italy – seeking to become the first Italian pope for 35 years – and Odilo Scherer from Brazil are the favorites with most bookmakers, with UK bookmaker William Hill offering odds of 9/4 and 4/1, respectively.
The relatively generous odds reflect what is generally regarded as being an open field, with the Catholic Church caught unawares by the unexpected resignation of Pope Benedict last month – the first unforced papal resignation for some 600 years.
The third favorite, Ghanaian Cardinal Peter Turkson, is at 9/2.
If either Scherer – a prolific Tweeter – or Turkson are elected, they would become the first ever non-European popes.
A dark horse, at 10/1, is Canadian Cardinal Marc Ouellet, the Vatican's chief theological watchdog.
New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan, at 20/1, has also been mentioned as a possible shock victor. His lack of fluency in foreign languages, a key skill for any pope, is a factor against him, however, analysts say.
The Paddy Power bookmaker is offering odds of 500/1 for rock singer Bono. The lead singer of Ireland’s U2 is not, however, a cardinal.
The 115 cardinal-electors attended a special Mass in St Peter's Basilica earlier on Tuesday. Later today they will head to the Sistine Chapel to begin their secret deliberations. They will vote four times a day until two-thirds agree on a candidate.
