Illegal Gambling Sites Are Now Accepting Bets on New COVID-19 Cases

Illegal Gambling Sites Are Now Accepting Bets on New COVID-19 Cases

As the gambling operators around the world are left shocked because of the sudden shutdowns, illegal gambling operators have started luring customers with absurd bets.

Betting on the daily number of COVID-19 cases

In an absurd turn of events, illegal gambling operators are now allowing users to bet on the number of coronavirus cases in Singapore and other countries. The information was revealed by The New Paper, which found at least five such sites, all of which had similar interfaces.

Illegal Gambling Sites Are Now Accepting Bets on New COVID-19 Cases

These sites are allowing punters to bet on the last digits of the number of new cases announced by the governments of Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore daily. They are also allowed to bet on the chances of even and odd numbers and on the possibility of the day’s numbers being higher than the previous day.

All the daily odds are results are displayed with other options in sports betting. It appears that this kind of betting has gained more prominence over traditional options like football, which used to be a revenue spinner for these sites.

Is it surprising?

Psychiatrists suggest that even though they didn’t expect gamblers to bet on coronavirus case numbers, they were not surprised that such an offering existed. According to Dr. Adrian Wang, a psychiatrist and counselor at Gleneagles Medical Centre, problem gamblers could go to any platform because of their addictive behavior. Gambling triggers pleasure centers in the brain. The act releases certain neurochemicals that help them get a sense of reward and satisfaction.

He added,

“They need this regular fix. Like an alcoholic who suddenly finds himself unable to afford whiskey and has to settle for cheap rice wine, problem gamblers who can’t bet in the casino or on suspended soccer games… will take what’s available.”

The betting cases on COVID-19 figures emerged after legal betting outlets were suspended in Singapore. The circuit breaker period began on April 7 because of which the Singapore Turf Club and Singapore Pools have been closed. The government has taken several measures to contain the pandemic, like imposing movement restrictions.

Punters are now looking for their gambling fix online and are being lured by illegal websites. Since legal websites cannot provide them adequate sports betting options, they are moving to offshore websites to fuel their addiction. The addictive tendencies of problem gamblers may not make them think twice before placing bets on an event.

About sherlock

Sherlock Gomes loves to write and express his views on anything related to Gaming, Gambling, & Casino. He has been covering Gaming for more than two years now.