Many Countries Once Banned Gambling... Then Changed Their Mind

[Japinat]

A lot of countries used to ban gambling completely, for moral or political reasons. But over time, many ended up bringing it back once they saw the money and tourism it could bring.

Like Japan, which banned casinos for years but now allows integrated resorts. Singapore did the same, opening Marina Bay Sands and Resorts World. Even the U.S. legalized sports betting after banning it for decades.

Shows that bans don’t really stop gambling, people just move underground. So for those living in countries where it’s still banned, don’t lose hope. Governments change their minds when they see the potential. Do you think more countries will legalize gambling soon?

[Odusko]

Really i havent seen any country that banned gambling for political reasons before, and if there is any i dont know you can point me to such countries and what the reasons are, gambling is more of a decentralized activities and regulations or banned cant eradicate Gambling from the society, some religion have been the center reason some countries banned gambling bit even at that, we still see gambling activities coming up from such highly religious countries.

[Japinat]

Really i havent seen any country that banned gambling for political reasons before, and if there is any i dont know you can point me to such countries and what the reasons are, gambling is more of a decentralized activities and regulations or banned cant eradicate Gambling from the society, some religion have been the center reason some countries banned gambling bit even at that, we still see gambling activities coming up from such highly religious countries.

It’s hard to find a ban that’s purely for political reasons, most of the time it’s tied to religion or moral codes. but if we stretch the definition a bit, there are indeed a few countries where the gambling ban was politically motivated too. You know how it is in our country .. politics is everywhere, even in corruption investigations. the ones doing the investigating are often protecting their own people, so IMO, that’s political in its own way.

I just included the political side because even if they won’t admit it, you can clearly observe it. most of the reasons they say are moral or religious, but politics is always hiding somewhere in there.

[Don Pedro Dinero]

Shows that bans don’t really stop gambling, people just move underground.

That's right, it makes it more dangerous for gamblers and the government loses a lot of tax revenue that it could collect. If it is permitted and well regulated, taxes can be collected while minimising negative impact.

It’s hard to find a ban that’s purely for political reasons, most of the time it’s tied to religion or moral codes. but if we stretch the definition a bit, there are indeed a few countries where the gambling ban was politically motivated too.

Agreed as well. I'm more of a practical person: if we're going to make gambling more dangerous by banning it and we're not going to put an end to it, we might as well allow it with sensible regulations.

[freedomgo]

Gambling is a growing industry worldwide, and it’s growing even faster now because of crypto adoption. So for countries looking for more revenue, this can actually be a big opportunity to increase government income. With how popular gambling has become, it’s not really hard anymore to find ways to regulate it. That’s why it makes sense that some countries which banned it before probably because they couldn’t regulate it properly are now realizing they’ve been missing out on a huge income potential, so they’re starting to unban it.

Just like how casinos evolved. Before, they were very limited and offered only a few games. Now there are tons of providers offering various games, even sports betting in some platforms. As the industry grows, it attracts more gamblers, and in the eyes of a government, that means more taxes. So instead of seeing it as a problem, they should see it as an opportunity.

[rdluffy]

Here in Brazil, physical casinos have been banned since 1946
However, they have been trying to legalize them for a few years now

My opinion is that, like Las Vegas, Brazil has places that could benefit from tourism if they legalized casinos, but there is so much corruption here, so much unwillingness to work, that the projects have been stalled for years

When they remain at a standstill and prohibit them, they actually make room for other things, such as online casinos, which are practically impossible to ban completely
They have missed good opportunities to already have something established in the country

[rodskee]

Shows that bans don’t really stop gambling, people just move underground.

honestly this can be applied to anything

anything that the government bans essentially becomes available only underground anything is accessible if you have enough money and connections and gambling is not an exception to the rule

So for those living in countries where it’s still banned, don’t lose hope. Governments change their minds when they see the potential. Do you think more countries will legalize gambling soon?

i would say it depends on the reason. some countries ban gambling for religion purposes and in that case it is hard to change their minds about that unless the entire state becomes unreligious. for my country, i doubt they would want to legalize and really support gambling after all the talks about almost everyone becoming addicted and the corrupt officials gambling with an insane amount of money

[BitTraderCute]

~
Shows that bans don’t really stop gambling, people just move underground. So for those living in countries where it’s still banned, don’t lose hope. Governments change their minds when they see the potential. Do you think more countries will legalize gambling soon?

Yes, everything can change suddenly due to the potential for enormous financial gain, and this is also consideration for some countries seeking to generate more revenue. However, some countries such as those in the Middle East or Asia may never legalize gambling, which have Muslim-majority populations and still adhere to religious rules and regulations, but whether this will change over time remains to be seen what is clear is that if more countries legalize and support gambling, the industry will grow rapidly in the future.

[Nwada001]

Shows that bans don’t really stop gambling, people just move underground. So for those living in countries where it’s still banned, don’t lose hope. Governments change their minds when they see the potential. Do you think more countries will legalize gambling soon?

If the government bans gambling, they are just cutting short the tax that they can get from legal gambling because that move doesn't stop the people from gambling, but it will only push them to gamble in an illegal way. If they see how much they are missing, which all are gradually seeing now, they will make a move to legalize it. The only country that might not go easy is China; I read that only few state allows gambling.

[BABY SHOES]

So for those living in countries where it’s still banned, don’t lose hope. Governments change their minds when they see the potential.

My country still prohibits any form of physical/online gambling, but we can still play because our country is rarely on the blacklist that excludes online casinos in its terms of service... so we are still free to play at casinos.

Do you think more countries will legalize gambling soon?

It is possible that several other countries will legalize gambling in the near future because they see the benefits in terms of revenue or tourism for the country.

[Ziskinberg]

If countries can’t completely block access to online casinos, then those bans are useless. sooner or later they’ll realize it’s better to just lift the ban, because people will gamble anyway, and by legalizing it, the government can actually earn revenue. That’s probably why some countries shifted from banning to allowing gambling. even with restrictions, people can easily use a VPN to access casinos, and most don’t even mind the risk of scams anymore since casino reputation now matters more to players than just having a license.

[Cryptomultiplier]

A lot of countries used to ban gambling completely, for moral or political reasons. But over time, many ended up bringing it back once they saw the money and tourism it could bring.

Like Japan, which banned casinos for years but now allows integrated resorts. Singapore did the same, opening Marina Bay Sands and Resorts World. Even the U.S. legalized sports betting after banning it for decades.

Shows that bans don’t really stop gambling, people just move underground. So for those living in countries where it’s still banned, don’t lose hope. Governments change their minds when they see the potential. Do you think more countries will legalize gambling soon?

As it is right now, more countries need financial support to function besides their access to world bank loans. Any means that would ensure a countries portfolio is heavy is what they do including enacting regulations that would see gamblers instead of experiencing total ban, only pay in some parts of the world, %15 tax returns on all gambling winnings.

While some countries make their regulations suit their needs, a country like Japan have very strict gambling rules against its own citizens but allow tourists gamble as they wish because they wouldn't spend long in the country, hence become addicted and become a nuisance in their country.

In order words, gambling is a huge source of revenue and more countries would turn to it for revenue and just regulate its activity to some degree.

[arwin100]

A lot of countries used to ban gambling completely, for moral or political reasons. But over time, many ended up bringing it back once they saw the money and tourism it could bring.

Like Japan, which banned casinos for years but now allows integrated resorts. Singapore did the same, opening Marina Bay Sands and Resorts World. Even the U.S. legalized sports betting after banning it for decades.

Shows that bans don’t really stop gambling, people just move underground. So for those living in countries where it’s still banned, don’t lose hope. Governments change their minds when they see the potential. Do you think more countries will legalize gambling soon?

They are under strict licensing so that those integrated resorts can operate gambling in japan. But as what I read they only allow Pachislot and Plinko since for them this is just for entertainment.

But for online gambling they prohibit all forms of it that's why there's still no hope for people in japan to gamble online if they look forward for this situation to happen. Also they ban Mahjong, Poker and  any private gambling activities done by their people.

With this thing they technically don't allow gambling and they are just selective on what they are accepting.

[cxtreenal]

Even though the government prohibits gambling, it operates secretly. This is just a counter argument for the government that they do not want to allow any gambling activities to be carried out in open places. If the participation of the lower class citizens in gambling is high it has a negative impact as a result the government of most countries does not allow it. The influential community of those countries runs gambling secretly. I think almost every country has a casino system for the entertainment of foreign tourists, it is either open or secret. Conservative countries keep it secret most of the time and choose luxurious separate places for playing. If you can gamble without the government legality then there is no need for legality.

[Emjay24]

Some Government that banned casinos and gambling providers in their countries for whatsoever reasons like the ones you mentioned found out that they're the ones losing heavily since the bans they placed did nothing to prevent the people from actually gambling but instead they enrich online casinos. People would always find way to gamble with VPNs to stay undetected. Maybe they've learned their lessons and decided to get their share from taxes to be paid by the casinos. It's a good one for them though, sometimes it still still takes a little time before the people are convinced that there would not be any consequences to freely engaging in those approved providers.

[Iroh]

Putting a ban on gambling likely won't stop people from gambling. It could turn out to make it more thrilling for some people knowing they're indulging in an act considered illegal by the government. They would quickly take the activity to the back room or go underground totally. The more secretive it seems, the more thrilling it can get for some people.
The government, knowing fully well about these underground gambling and the potential to generate revenue would then reverse the ban so they also can be invited to the party and then have a slice of the birthday cake.

[danherbias07]

That's why I kept saying in my posts from other threads like this that banning that regulation is the key, not banning it all the way.

It's the money. The tax. It will help a lot of people in the locality, especially if the money comes from the tourists and the rich only. They can ban locals from gambling or make an entry fee that is difficult to reach for an average salaryman, just like Singapore, to avoid their fellow countrymen from being dragged into gambling addiction.  
The money in gambling is high because of the house edge and taxes. It's definitely needed by countries that want to recover from economic problems.

[Findingnemo]

But governments that banned gambling for religious purposes may not take the same stance or it will take very long time for that to change so it's not about losing their hope towards legalization but what they can make it to bring it back. A legal fight is the way forward but it is not possible by the user which is a lot expensive so the casinos may have to take the responsibility of fighting the legal battles and increase their potential userbase.

[Odusko]

Really i havent seen any country that banned gambling for political reasons before, and if there is any i dont know you can point me to such countries and what the reasons are, gambling is more of a decentralized activities and regulations or banned cant eradicate Gambling from the society, some religion have been the center reason some countries banned gambling bit even at that, we still see gambling activities coming up from such highly religious countries.

It’s hard to find a ban that’s purely for political reasons, most of the time it’s tied to religion or moral codes. but if we stretch the definition a bit, there are indeed a few countries where the gambling ban was politically motivated too. You know how it is in our country .. politics is everywhere, even in corruption investigations. the ones doing the investigating are often protecting their own people, so IMO, that’s political in its own way.

I just included the political side because even if they won’t admit it, you can clearly observe it. most of the reasons they say are moral or religious, but politics is always hiding somewhere in there.

That I must agreed with because even the country have to back the religion up to be able to enforce the level of restrictions that theihard I. Gambling with in the region, so everything still balls down to politics, but even at that we have seen that gambling have continued to soar above all those restrictions and ban that have happened and many have to find a way to gamble with currency that give them privacy, that is where cryptocurrency online casinos comes to play a role in all of that now.

[Marvelockg]

Shows that bans don’t really stop gambling, people just move underground. So for those living in countries where it’s still banned, don’t lose hope. Governments change their minds when they see the potential. Do you think more countries will legalize gambling soon?

This reminds me of a time when it appears as though bitcoin and crypto in general has been banned in my country. officially and on the media, there were a lot of news that supports such claim but within those that are actively involved in crypto, we all knew that nothing has changed that much. it was just a matter of time before the whole ban of a thing went down to almost nothing nothing and people became free to engage in crypto transactions even in the public. same is the case with gambling especially in a society where with the use of VPN, you can access any site you want to. when you even consider the profit also, it gives you far more reasons to know that banning gambling in most part is just a temporary initiative.