Last year the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) started issuing e-Sabong licenses to select venues during the pandemic to drive revenue and prevent social gatherings. Now the government agency has suspended those licenses and is actively looking to eliminate all online cockfighting until a better framework is in place.
To help stop illegal online cockfighting, PAGCOR has teamed up with the Philippine National Police (PNP) to fight online operations. The PNP has already issued a special report to the undersecretary overseeing the process and stated they intend to deliver a stronger response to online operators who don’t comply. The PNP also confirmed that they are engaged in busting illegal online gambling operations.
PAGCOR Explained
The government created the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation to regulate all gambling operations in the Philippines. The office reports and takes direction from the office of the President and his administration to generate revenue for the country.
To oversee the gambling sector, PAGCOR issues licenses that are taxed. These licenses allow operators to legally offer their services in the Philippines, whether sports betting, casino gambling, or online e-Sabong gambling. To fight e-Sabong, PAGCOR suspended their online Sabong licenses. PAGCOR can revoke permissions for any reason.
How Does Online Cockfighting Work?
PAGCOR issued licenses to domestic cockpits. That means that select venues registered with the government could legally offer online cockfighting via their web-based applications. Bettors who wished to bet on the events were asked to open an account to wager online instead of in person.
The nature of the events caters to individual cockpits and the rooster fights they promote. Since these events are local and not televised, Philippine legal online sportsbooks typically won’t offer odds on such competitions.
Legal Online Sports Betting
In 2019, PAGCOR also issued domestic online sports betting licenses. Online sports betting has always been legal in the Philippines, but domestic sites were only granted special privileges during the Covid lockdowns. For most bettors, offshore sportsbooks are the better option since they are allowed under current Philippine gambling laws. Offshore sports betting sites are also not restricted to certain obligations like betting on domestic events.
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