Akihabara News (Tokyo) — Out of the public eye, a coalition of forces aiming for the legalization of private-sector sports betting has become active in Japan.
There are multiple factors driving some policymakers towards seriously considering overturning what has long been a taboo in Japan.
One factor is the example of the United States, which Japan often looks towards as representative of cutting edge trends. The US Supreme Court ruled in 2018 that a law banning sports betting was unconstitutional, and this has unleashed a rapidly expanding sports betting industry in the country, pouring tax revenues into public coffers.
Indeed, even now it is estimated that up to ¥6 trillion (US$44 billion) worth of bets are being placed on Japanese sports via overseas companies, providing no benefit to Japan’s public finances.
Japan is the only G7 nation which has banned private-sector sports betting, although most Asian nations share Tokyo’s wariness about legalization.
A second factor is that some technology companies are pushing the government towards legalized sports betting, with Rakuten and Mixi being the most outspoken.
Reports have been submitted to the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) by the Japan Association of New Economy and possibly others advising that private-sector sports betting should be allowed.
In early June, then-METI Minister Koichi Hagiuda (who was also a key promoter of casino resort legislation) acknowledged that legalization of private-sector sports betting was under consideration by his ministry, although he took pains to note that no such initiative would be launched in the immediate future.
Finally, there is the fact that sports betting is already expanding and digitizing through public-sector parimutuel betting such as horse, motorcycle, bicycle, and speedboat racing. In FY2020, proceeds from these events totaled ¥6.8 trillion (US$50 billion), up 17% from the previous year. There are also the public-sector lotteries.
For most of this century racing events were in decline as old stadiums fell into disrepair and fewer people showed up at the tracks, but their fortunes have revived in more recent years, particularly with the rise of new online betting options. The economic turnaround has been sharp in some cases.
Despite these factors in favor of private-sector sports betting, it is widely understood that much of the Japanese public–possibly a majority–will strongly oppose legalization, much as they have opposed casino resort legalization.
There have already been major gambling-related scandals in the Japanese sports world, including in Nippon Professional Baseball and in the Japan Sumo Association. Yakuza organized crime syndicates have been involved in match-fixing. Perhaps the most notorious episode was the “Black Mist Scandal” in the baseball world in 1969-1971. There have been others.
Japanese citizen groups can also be expected to argue that the wholesome nature of Japanese sports, so integral to the education of young people, should not be ensnared by private-sector betting schemes. It is an invitation for the moral corruption of the young.
Concerns about the further spread of gambling addiction are also likely to be cited.
Nevertheless, some observers argue that its only a matter of time before gambling industries–including casino resorts, online gambling, and sports betting–are given the green light by the Japanese government, if for no other reason that the internet age has already unleashed a tsunami of gambling within Japanese society, but with much of that money flowing out of the country rather than benefiting public finances.
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