Latest from Rome and beyond

• AND THE WINNER IS ... | 12:48 a.m. ET

Gamblers on Sunday pegged German cardinal Joseph Ratzinger as their runaway favorite to succeed Pope John Paul II in a global sweepstakes that one bookmaker said topped the Oscars.

Ratzinger, who turned 78 on Saturday, was the solid leader on three online betting boards, with Intertops giving him the shortest odds at 2-1.

But on his heels were two Italians and a Frenchman who has apparently been helped by prophecies circulating on the Internet. Within striking distance were a Brazilian and Nigerian.

"There's enormous betting interest on the papal situation," said Graham Sharpe, spokesperson for British bookmakers William Hill.

British bookie Paddy Power said the first conclave in a quarter of a century was getting to be a bigger non-sporting betting event than the Academy Awards.

"This has been huge," Power said.

The veteran dean of cardinals who delivered the homily at John Paul's funeral, Ratzinger was a 3-1 favorite for Paddy Power and 7/2 at William Hill. The odds on the German had narrowed from 4-1 on Friday and 11-2 on Thursday.

A favorite of doctrinal conservatives, Ratzinger was expected to draw early support, but most Italian newspapers predicted he would not muster the requisite two-thirds majority.

• AN ITALIAN POPE AGAIN? | 11:30 p.m. ET

Pope John Paul II was the first non-Italian pope in 455 years, and many analysts say the Italians are desperate to reclaim the papacy. But ordinary Italians on the streets say the new pope need not be one of them.

On Monday, 115 cardinals will sequester themselves inside the Sistine Chapel to choose a new leader for the Roman Catholic Church. Italy has the biggest national group, but the bloc of 20 cardinals is not big enough for them to pick a pope on their own.

“He doesn’t need to be Italian. He can be from China. He can be from Japan,” said Marisa Devito, a 53-year-old waitress at a restaurant near St. Peter’s Square. “The important thing is that he be a good pope.”

John Paul’s election in 1978 broke the centuries-long tradition of naming Italians to the post. Vatican observers have said many Italians expect to get the papacy back this time, but that does not bear out on the streets.

“For us, the best would be a Latin American pope,” said Annelo Francesco, 64, wiping a glass on his newsstand near St. Peter’s Square. “There would be more business, because more people would come from Latin America.”

Latin America has 20 voting cardinals — and nearly half the church’s followers. Some analysts believe that to recognize the importance of its Latin American flock, the church will need to name the first pope from the other side of the Atlantic.

“I’d like him to be Italian because I’m Italian, but in the end it wouldn’t make a difference,” said Roberto Brunetti, 34. “There’s no difference: Latin, African.”

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