Although gambling on sporting events is prohibited in many Asian countries, illegal gambling reached its heyday in Asia during the 2010 World Cup. Gamblers who placed a bet during the month-long soccer tournament, risked jail sentences or worse.

According to Interpol, police in Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and China arrested more than 5,000 people in connection to illegal betting during the tournament, which ended earlier this month. The raids included the casino gambling Mecca, Macau. Interpol said the raids, which took place between June 11 and July 11 and were coordinated by Interpol, have ensured that more than 800 illegal gambling companies have stopped, that processed more than 100 million pounds in bets.

Jean-Michel Louboutin Interpol said: "The results we have seen are impressive. As well as having clear connections to organised crime gangs, illegal soccer gambling is also linked with corruption, money laundering and prostitution." In Malaysia, illegal sports betting was a success thanks to the easy access to bookmakers, some even doubled as loan sharks, giving out cash loans with a ridiculously high interest rate. Because of the easy access to these illegal bookmakers, it was easy for people to take part in these illegal activities. Sports betting and casino gambling are very popular in Asia, the Macau casino revenues, surpassed the revenues of Las Vegas, becoming the best destination for gambling. In not too long, the Macao casino gambling industry will overshadow the U.S. gambling market.

Illegal gambling remains a problem in Hong Kong and Singapore, where it is legal to gamble on football, with state owned monopolies. The attraction to bet illegally is mainly because it is easier to borrow, the chances are better and because of the rule that they only have to pay when they lose. But not paying of the loans can have serious impacts, the police warns that some illegal bookmakers have links with organized crime.

The number of funds taken during this World Cup is nearly five times more that during the World Cup in 2006. The number of arrests is approximately three times as much. Besides the funds, police also seized cars, bank cards, computers and mobile phones. In the Thai capital alone, more than 1,800 people were arrested, but less bookmakers because players chose to gamble at online casinos.

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