Should Vietnam Introduce Legal Betting?

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Wednesday, February 24th, 2016 | Written by Shane Larson

Vietnam is a country were freedoms are few and poverty is very high, so it’s the last place where one would expect to find people able to legally place bets on sporting matches. Surprisingly, though, there is a debate raging in the Asian nation that indicates the government is seriously considering taking steps to allow for online and in-person sports betting, as the benefits could greatly outweigh the drawbacks for the country.

Gambling in Vietnam Today

With 90 million people living within its borders, Vietnam is a relatively large country despite being small in size. Currently, all forms of gambling are illegal in the south-east Asian country, apart from the state-run lottery, and numerous foreigner-only land-based casinos. Anyone found contravening the law faces the prospect of steep fines, although those individuals prosecuted often find themselves with suspended prison sentence, rather than actual jail time.

The Reality

The country’s draconian gambling laws do not mean that Vietnamese people are not gambling. From 2000 to 2009, for instance, the Vietnamese government arrested more than 8,500 people for illegal sports betting, and seized revenues worth close to $95 million.

So just how are people betting? Some are using websites and gambling with offshore accounts, hoping to stay under the radar of the government. Most Vietnamese sports bettors, though, are placing wagers by phone or in person with local bookies. The bookies typically work for organized crime bosses, meaning those who end up not being able to pay face threats of violence and even murder. Industry experts estimate that hundreds of millions of dollars are likely spent every year on illegal sports wagering within Vietnam with bets being made on EPL football games.

Elaborating further on the situation, a 33-year-old restaurateur who chose to remain anonymous, but who had previously worked for a Macau-based sports betting website for five years, said: “All the sports betting in this country is happening online. Casino gambling is only for rich people, but anyone can bet on sports.”

Worries About the Internet

Legalizing sports betting online in Vietnam is more complex than in other countries, as Internet freedom is seriously lacking in the Asian nation. The government heavily controls what websites are accessible within the country and is known to block sites like the BBC and Facebook when there are concerns that anti-government material may be viewed by Vietnamese citizens. Still, about 35 percent of the population uses the Internet regularly in Vietnam, so there would still be a large potential pool of bettors if the country were to take steps to legalize online sports betting.

The Argument for and Against

Pros

Those in favor of legalizing sports betting in Vietnam argue that if people are going to bet anyway, the government ought to legalize and regulate the activity. There are beliefs that making sports betting legal would be a drain on organized crime and potentially cripple some of the cartels and mobs that currently operate in Vietnam. Plus, gambling revenues could then be taxed and gambling websites could be compelled to keep money within the country to benefit both Vietnam’s coffers and their economy.

As one commenter explained on forum and betting website Nha Cai Tot Nhat: “Even if the government wanted to ban it, they couldn’t. So it just watches a huge amount of foreign currency leak overseas, and potential tax revenue is lost.”

Cons

The argument against legal sports betting in Vietnam is much the same as it is in other countries. Currently, the Vietnamese government defines gambling as a moral vice, likening it to drug use and prostitution. Legalizing sports betting would mean a dramatic shift in culture, but supporters argue that it’s time for that move to occur and to provide equal access to gambling and land-based casinos to all Vietnamese people, and not just foreign visitors.

In the meantime, there is a reluctance by government officials to push for gambling legislation in Vietnam, as no one wants to be stigmatized as the person responsible for encouraging gambling amongst the country’s citizens. The consequences of such vilification would then increase exponentially if legalized gambling subsequently resulted in the negative social consequences anticipated by concerned officials.