Sports betting is a large global industry that offers limitless possibilities for gamblers who are passionate about sporting activities. If you would like to try it out, it is essential to know everything about this industry including the legal frameworks of your country.
People who like to gamble while traveling should also know the legal implications they might face when trying to undertake this activity in different parts of the world. To help you identify countries where it is legal, here is a list offering some useful information.
North America
For a long time, the U.S has banned sports betting by enforcing a federal law that prohibited single-game wagering. As the years went by, the Supreme Court lifted the ban and started allowing single-game wagering. That made sports betting permissible and easily accessible to millions of individuals that daily partake in this activity.
The ban was lifted in 2018 and since then, the U.S has been legally permitting individuals to bet on sports. Not all states have moved on with the program but a lot of them are now permitting it.
Those states include Nevada, New York, and New Jersey while others have their launch date underway. Also, online gambling in Pennsylvania is permitted to legal age gamblers that would like to play. Canada also has some relaxed sports betting laws because there aren’t explicit laws that ban this activity.
If individuals are of legal age and using licensed sports betting providers, they should not have any major problems in a lot of states in the U.S and in Canada.
Follow Chat Sports on YouTube for the latest NFL and NBA news & rumors!
Europe, UK, and AU
Europe has varying legalities of sports betting, depending on the country you are in. For example, Netherlands online casinos are quite radioactive and have a lot of different games can enjoy. In Spain, sports betting is also legal in both walk-in facilities and also using online arrangements.
The United Kingdom also has similar policies as Spain because you can gamble using any method convenient for yourself.
In New Zealand, gambling through sports betting is also legal both on walk-in facilities and on the internet. Although that is true, there are some restrictions on the sites that you must acquaint yourself with to gamble in New Zealand.
For example, gambling on New Zealand-based websites through sports betting is prohibited. Gamblers can only access online sports betting using international digital casinos and websites.
Down under, in Australia, online sports betting is a common practice and does not have any legal blowback. The same applies to gambling at walk-in facilities located in this country.
Asia
Asia has some contradicting opinions and laws about sports betting because of the diversity in this continent. For example, in Japan, it is legal to bet on certain sporting events but not all sports are permitted.
Whereas in Thailand, it is considered as an illegal practice both online and at walk-in establishments. In Taiwan, sports betting is the only type of gambling that is permitted and all other games are deemed illegal.
In Asia, the most easygoing country is Macau because all types of gambling are legal. It does not matter where you would like to have some sports betting fun, Macau does not have any strict bans.
You can find various online casino low playthrough activated that are allowed in Macau. In Hong Kong, it is legal to only bet on football matches and nothing else. China allows sports betting but only in walk-in casinos and not online.
The Middle East & West Asia
In the Middle East & West Asia, the sports betting rules also vary because of the diversity of countries and different cultures across this region. In the United Arab Emirates, it is illegal to gamble online and offline except for all types of sports betting. Pakistan has some quite strict legal frameworks that only permit betting on horses only.
There are no Pakistani sites that offer other types of gambling but they work around that by using international sports betting websites. Bangladesh also has similar principles of legally prohibiting other types of gambling except for horse wagering.
Lebanon has the strictest laws and measures to ensure that citizens do not gamble. You cannot access online sites because Internet Service Providers block these types of websites. Other countries also have varying legal frameworks in place because of the number of countries in these regions.
The bottom line
Sports betting is legal in most parts of the world, especially those who are perceived to be developed. That drives in a lot of money for the country in the tourism sector and the money collected on taxes involved with this practice. Whenever you are traveling abroad, ensure that you know the gambling rules applying in that country to avoid being on the wrong side of the law.