Soccer Gambling Favorite Thailand? "World Cup Gambling Scale Reaches 2 Trillion Won"

Thai Police Form Task Force to Crack Down on World Cup Gambling
Over 10,000 Arrested on World Cup Gambling Charges

World Cup gambling thrives every four years to the extent that it becomes a social issue in Thailand. The photo is not related to the specific content of the article. Photo by AP·Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Bang Je-il] Although Thailand was eliminated from the Qatar World Cup qualifiers, the interest and enthusiasm for the World Cup are hotter than in any other country. The reason is World Cup gambling.

World Cup gambling becomes such a widespread social issue in Thailand every four years. In response, the Thai police have established measures and launched intensive crackdowns to eradicate World Cup gambling. During the 2022 Qatar World Cup period, the Thai police arrested more than 10,000 gambling offenders as a result of their focused crackdown on illegal sports gambling.

According to local media The Nation on the 14th, the police announced that since forming a task force (TF) last month to respond to Qatar World Cup gambling, they have arrested 10,644 people on gambling charges. This includes 90 offline gambling operators, over 9,000 participants, 28 online gambling site operators, and 743 participants. Among those arrested for online gambling offenses were 10 minors.

Young Thais who genuinely love football save money for months in advance to bet on the World Cup finals matches. According to estimates by the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce (UTCC), the amount wagered by Thais on the Qatar World Cup gambling reached 57.2 billion baht (approximately 2.1421 trillion KRW).

The Technology Crime Suppression Division (TCSD) of the police raided 13 locations on the 13th to apprehend an organization operating an online gambling site for the Qatar World Cup, arresting five people and seizing assets including more than 1 billion baht (approximately 37.5 billion KRW) in cash. The police stated that the amount circulated through the sites they operated for Qatar World Cup gambling was about 3 billion baht (approximately 112.4 billion KRW).

At a residence in downtown Bangkok, cash, 65 bankbooks, 39 luxury watches, 18 real estate documents, and 3 luxury cars were found. In Thailand, gambling is illegal except for government-issued lotteries and horse racing. However, as illegal sports gambling flourishes even outside the World Cup period, the Thai government is considering allowing casino operations to promote tourism.

Meanwhile, amid the intense World Cup fever in Thailand, during this Qatar World Cup period, nationwide prisons allowed inmates to watch live broadcasts of Qatar World Cup football matches as a 'year-end privilege.'

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.