The Prime Minister of Cambodia was today forced to appeal to his citizens not to bet their money or possessions on the World Cup amid reports of families losing their homes and livelihoods to bookmakers.

Although the national side is one of the weakest on the planet - it has never qualified for the tournament and did not even attempt to enter Germany 2006 - the impoverished nation has nevertheless been swept up by football fever.

Prime Minister Hun Sen was today moved to tell his people to stop betting cows, goats, motorcycles and homes on the success of their favourite teams.

Across the war-scarred nation, Cambodians from every walk of life have been staying up into the small hours to watch the matches of their chosen sides.

On his blog, Lux wrote: "I dream of Cambodian Team going to the world cup. I am afraid and wonder whether I will live long enough to see Cambodia go to such a great event..."

"Go ahead and watch it, but do not sell your cows, motorcycles, cars, homes and land to bet on the games," Hun Sen urged his people.

"Just bet verbally, for fun. Don’t sell your cows to bet on games of football," he told the several hundred villagers and foreign diplomats at the opening of a provincial hospital.

Cambodia has only one official soccer betting company, which has been doing a brisk trade since the World Cup kicked off in Germany last week.

Hun Sen himself has confessed to backing Japan - his government’s largest donor.

Last week, the leader of Cambodia’s Buddhist monks, Supreme Patriarch Non Ngeth his 40,000 followers that they were allowed to watch the matches but had to remain passive or risk being defrocked.

"If they make noise or cheer as they watch, they will lose their monkhoods," he said.

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