Chinese courts and law enforcement agencies have warned the public to stay away from World Cup betting rings and illegal sports wagering platforms.
The public bodies published details of recent legal cases involving soccer bets, telling residents they could face jail time if they do not heed their cautions.
Many gambling ring operators act as go-betweens, using social media and encrypted chat apps, said the Qingxiu District Court, according to the Chinese media outlet Nanning News Network.
The court gave the example of a man surnamed Wan, a resident of Nanning, in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.
From 2020 to 2025, Wan was a member of a WeChat group chat along with three others. Acting on their behalf, Wan regularly took money from the trio and placed bets on overseas gambling sites with his own private accounts.
The group chat members also made a range of informal wagers using the same platform, with Wan distributing the winnings.
In total, the trio placed 450,000 yuan (about $67,000) in illegal bets through Wan.
Police eventually learned of the group and arrested Wan at his home last summer.
World Cup Betting Go-Betweens Sent to Jail
The district court ruled that Wan was guilty of “organizing gambling,” sentencing him to nine months in prison and fining him 20,000 yuan ($3,000).
The court added that similar cases are on the rise in Nanning. It warned that as World Cup fever sweeps the country, some online gambling operators are now offering soccer wagers “under the guise of match predictions.”
A district court judge stated that online sports betting is “often disguised as casual entertainment among friends or just-for-fun predictions.”
But the judge warned that when money changes hands, “this crosses legal lines and involves numerous risks.”
The court added that many online gambling platforms that target Chinese users harvest personal data, including ID card numbers and bank card details.
This, in turn, can lead to voice phishing fraud and even “violent debt collection.”
“Watch matches with a rational mind and only engage in legal forms of entertainment,” said the judge. “Refrain from participating in online sports betting, acting as a betting intermediary, or facilitating the transfer of gambling-related funds.”
Intermediaries ‘Facilitated Gambling on Hong Kong, US Betting Sites’
Elsewhere in the nation, police gave details of another case whereby two men, surnamed Wu and Liu, “jointly acted as agents for multiple overseas online gambling platforms.”
The duo reportedly “accepted bets and provided fund settlement services in exchange for rebates.”
Prosecutors have accused another man, surnamed Yang, of putting the duo in touch with would-be gamblers.
A spokesperson said the three men had used their scheme to place bets worth 1.33 million yuan ($197,000) on the unnamed betting platforms.
Officers said the gambling sites were based in Hong Kong and the US.
All forms of gambling are illegal in Mainland China, with the exception of two state lotteries.
The case is still active pending a trial, Chinese police officials explained. Yang, Wu, and Liu have reportedly made full confessions.
Earlier this month, police arrested a gang of people suspected of orchestrating the biggest gold heist in modern Chinese history.
The gang’s two alleged masterminds reportedly planned the robbery after amassing heavy gambling-related debts.
