According to the South China Morning Post (SCMP), Hong Kong is considering legalizing basketball betting as a way to boost additional revenue for the government.
A report published on February 24 states that the city’s financial chief, Paul Chan Mo-po, is exploring various solutions to address a budget deficit of nearly HKD 100 billion ($12.7 billion). One potential solution is expanding legal sports betting.
An anonymous source informed SCMP that the government might allow the Hong Kong Jockey Club (HKJC) to expand its betting offerings to include basketball.
Currently, HKJC holds a monopoly on the legal sports betting market in Hong Kong, offering betting only on horse racing and football.
Allowing basketball betting could significantly increase government revenue through additional tax income.
Illegal Basketball Betting in Hong Kong Has Become Widespread
HKJC CEO Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges has previously noted that Hong Kong residents actively use illegal bookmakers for basketball betting. His estimates suggest that up to 150,000 people are involved in illegal basketball betting. If such betting is legalized, HKJC could attract up to 60% of these players to its official platform.
Engelbrecht-Bresges pointed out that illegal sports betting in Hong Kong constitutes a huge industry, with betting volumes around HKD 350 billion ($44.8 billion) in 2023. According to him, basketball betting accounted for approximately 15% of this amount, which is equivalent to HKD 52.5 billion ($6.72 billion).
Engelbrecht-Bresges also noted that if basketball betting were legalized in Hong Kong, its turnover could represent about one-third of HKJC’s total revenue from football betting in 2023.
Currently, legal sports betting in Hong Kong is subject to a 50% tax on the net income from authorized football bets. If basketball betting were included in this structure, it could significantly increase government revenue.
HKJC Maintains a Monopoly on Betting
Hong Kong has a unique legal framework for sports betting that tightly regulates the market while maintaining a state-controlled monopoly.
Although land-based sports betting is prohibited in the region, online betting is allowed, but exclusively through HKJC, which is the only authorized online sports betting operator in Hong Kong.
The regulation of online sports betting through a single authorized operator has facilitated steady and controlled market growth.
Since customers have no other legal alternatives, HKJC has experienced significant growth in its operations, especially in football betting.
If basketball betting is legalized, it is likely to be organized in a similar model, ensuring that bets are placed within a regulated system, increasing government revenues and reducing the impact of illegal gambling networks.
However, despite such a tightly controlled system, illegal sports betting remains widespread in Hong Kong.
Many residents continue to place bets through illegal offshore bookmakers or underground operators, often due to the lack of regulated betting options beyond horse racing and football.
Don’t forget to subscribe to our Telegram channel!
