Authorities in Hong Kong have issued a warning to citizens against gambling on foreign betting websites during the World Cup, reiterating that those doing so can be prosecuted under the city’s Gambling Ordinance.
In comments reported by the South China Morning Post, Chief Inspector Wong Yu-fai said, “Some online gambling websites claim they are legally registered overseas, but anyone gambling on these so-called legal websites in Hong Kong may already have committed the offence of betting with a bookmaker.”
According to the SCMP, Wong also warned against the use of VPNs or other means to access foreign sites, noting that such sites were increasingly using digital means to target customers across global markets and settle bets.
“Engaging in illegal gambling or betting is like opening the door to criminals,” he said, adding that some sites were controlled by criminal syndicates. “Your phone number and your bank account are now known to the criminal world.”
A crackdown on illegal betting during the Euro 2024 tournament saw 735 people arrested in Hong Kong, while 1,104 were arrested during the 2022 World Cup.
The SCMP said there were 374 serious gambling cases recorded by local authorities last year with 4,482 people arrested and more than HK$3 million (US$382,900) in cash and crime proceeds seized.
In 2024, police arrested 5,341 people in 471 serious gambling cases.
The warning by Hong Kong police comes after FIFA’s official prediction market partner, ADI Predictstreet, officially went live on Monday.
In its announcement, ADI Predictstreet noted that it would allow users to fund accounts using both digital assets and traditional fiat payment methods, although it stressed that it was only operating in “regulated markets”. Consumers in other global jurisdictions, it stated, should have access to ADI Predictstreet through a growing network of “compliant strategic partners, creating a scalable pathway to regulated market access globally.”
The Hong Kong government in April halted a plan to introduce basketball betting as a legal form of gambling, pointing to concerns that the rapidly rising “prediction markets” in the United States may generate negative spillover effects.
The city currently allows betting on football and horse racing via the Hong Kong Jockey Club.