Hong Kong's government began a public consultation on April 2 on a proposal to regulate basketball betting, after weighing a submission from the Hong Kong Jockey Club, the views of the Betting and Lotteries Commission and other matters tied to illegal basketball gambling1. The government proposes to amend the Betting Duty Ordinance (Cap. 108) to create a regulatory framework and empower the Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs to issue the Jockey Club a license to operate basketball betting, with license conditions attached1.
The government said the Jockey Club's latest assessment put illegal basketball betting turnover in 2024 at HKD 70 billion to 90 billion1. It said the 2025-26 Budget had proposed actively exploring regulation of basketball betting, and that the proposal follows the model used for football betting1.
The proposed license conditions, as set out in the announcement, are:
| Condition | Detail |
|---|---|
| Licence term | The license must state its period of validity1 |
| Bet and event types | The government will set limits on the number of bet types and event types1 |
| Local events | The licensee may not accept bets on basketball events involving Hong Kong teams or held in Hong Kong1 |
| Minors | The licensee may not accept bets from minors1 |
| Credit | The licensee may not accept credit card bets1 |
| Warnings | The licensee must display notices on the seriousness of gambling addiction and provide information on gambling disorder services1 |
A Home and Youth Affairs Bureau spokesman said:
"政府的政策是不鼓勵賭博。針對賭博帶來的問題，政府採取多管齊下的策略，包括透過法例規管賭博活動、透過執法打擊非法賭博活動、透過公眾教育宣傳沉迷賭博的禍害，以及為有需要人士提供輔導和支援服務。"
The same statement said society has a real and sustained demand for gambling, and that leaving it unregulated could lead to illegal gambling and the social problems and other crime that follow, so the government takes a pragmatic approach and permits only a small number of approved gambling channels, including horse racing betting, Mark Six lotteries and football betting under the Betting Duty Ordinance1.
The existing requirements will largely stay the same, including the ban on bets from minors, the ban on credit card bets, and the requirement to display warnings about gambling addiction and provide information on gambling disorder services1. The licensing authority will continue to require the licensee not to accept bets on football events involving Hong Kong teams or held in Hong Kong, and limits will remain on the number of bet types and event types offered1.
What it means for players
Basketball betting in Hong Kong is not licensed today. If the framework is enacted as proposed, the only lawful operator would be the Jockey Club, and the conditions above would apply to it: no bets on games involving Hong Kong teams or played in Hong Kong, no bets by minors, and no credit card funding. Bet types and competitions covered would be capped, so the menu would be narrower than what unlicensed operators offer. Betting with an unlicensed bookmaker remains illegal, and the government's stated reason for the proposal is the size of that illegal market. The consultation document and submission details are on the bureau's website1.
What happens next
Written comments are due by May 2, by post to the Home Affairs Division of the Home and Youth Affairs Bureau, by fax to 2591 6002, or by email to ha@hyab.gov.hk, with the postmark date counting for mailed submissions1. No date has been reported for a decision on the basketball framework or for when a license might be issued.
Sources1 sources
- 政府就規範籃球博彩活動的建議進行諮詢, info.gov.hk
