If the bird's many new believers are right, Holland will win its first World Cup championship on Sunday.

Mani grabbed a card in his beak and flipped it over to reveal the Dutch flag.

The 13-year-old parakeet has become a local celebrity after its owner, M. Muniyappan, claimed Mani accurately forecast the World Cup's four quarter-final games and Spain's semi-final victory over Germany.

"He's a special bird," Mr Muniyappan said.

Mani joins Paul the octopus, who has correctly predicted the winner of every World Cup match played by Germany, as overnight stars as interest in soccer's biggest tournament peaks and gamblers look for any edge to pick winners.

Mr Muniyappan, an 80-year-old fortune-teller, said Mani has helped him predict the future for five years at a table in front of a restaurant in the Little India neighbourhood, but this year's World Cup is the first time the parakeet has attempted to forecast the outcome of sports competitions.

"People usually want help picking the lottery numbers, or when to get married," said Mr Muniyappan, who was born in India and moved to Singapore in 1953. "Then gamblers started asking about the World Cup."

Mr Muniyappan said about 30 people a day now pay for his psychic powers, up from about 10 a day before Mani shot to fame.

Singapore's ethnic Chinese, Malay and Indian populations, especially the older generations, often seek out fortune-tellers for advice about health or their children's marriage and job prospects.