China Cracks Down On Online Sports Betting and Gambling
If you live in China, you are probably already aware that gambling over the internet is not legal. The World Cup of Soccer is a momentous occasion for sports bettors and online sports betting companies alike. As such, Chinese authorities are taking this opportunity to put a stop to online soccer gambling.
The Ministry of Public Security of China made it known Sunday that it would no longer be lenient towards online sports betting. Those caught placing, or accepting, online soccer bets during the World Cup would face harsh penalties.
According to Guan Jian, a ministry official, the authorities in China have placed stringent monitors on internet gambling at all levels of enforcement. Jian revealed the unsympathetic intentions of the ministry at a news conference, warning online soccer bettors of the severe punishment intended for anyone who chooses to disregard the laws of the country in this regard.
To prove their unwavering intentions, the Ministry of Public Security had already resolved 740 online gambling cases as of Saturday. In excess of 3,600 suspects had been arrested by authorities with more than 700,000,000 Yuan (that’s about $102 million USD) in gambling funds confiscated.
Of the thousands of arrests made, more than 180 of those were linked directly to wagering organizations in Hong Kong, Malaysia, Macao and the Philippines.
It would certainly appear that Chinese authorities have put their foot down in such a way that online bettors may actually be timid enough to put a halt to their illegal online gambling actions. Whether online gambling operators feel the same way is yet to be seen, but certainly there will be more caution taken when accepting sports bets from Chinese customers.
The initial affect is definitely more overwhelming than what we’ve seen in the United States as the Department of Justice has been attempting to ‘crack down’ on illegal online gambling for several years running. These attempts have all but failed as Americans continue to maintain real money online casino, poker, bingo and sports betting memberships at hundreds of offshore online gambling sites around the world.
It is not clear whether the government of China intends to sustain its staunch onslaught of online gambling organizations once the World Cup is over, but if there was ever a strong opportunity to catch a plethora of illegal gamblers and operators in the act, the World Cup of Soccer would be the prime moment to make that happen.