A betting problem?

Betting on sports has always been an unsolvable problem in sports beyond memory. Nothing can stop people from wagering on sporting events. Filipinos, in particular, are fascinated by probability. Any time there is a contest of any kind – even two spiders fighting on a stick – Filipinos would bet on who would win. But to be clear, if you are an adult gambling your own personal money, then no one can pass judgment on you as long as you are able to deal with the consequences, particularly the bad. In the past, sports fans have had to contend with rumors of shadowy figures enticing people from behind the scenes, making people throw away money they can’t afford to lose on basketball games, boxing matches and so on. Globally as of 2021, legal online gambling is a $231-billion industry, with roughly a fourth of that coming from the US. But we know that the market is much, much bigger than that.

In reality, there should be no connection between betting and sports events themselves. Games are public events, and therefore, results are available to anyone. You can’t stop anyone from betting on the outcome, who scores the most, and so on. The problem starts when gamblers try to affect the results of games, creating a smoky bridge between the two worlds that should never exist in the first place.

Recently, there appears to be an emerging new trend that threatens the integrity of local sports, particularly basketball. The proliferation of online betting platforms has become a new temptation for characters of a dubious nature to influence the outcome (or at least the point difference) of games. Basketball is the most tempting target, because there are so many games, they are played regularly and frequently, and leagues are a small community. Once you get your hooks into a few influential personalities (players, coaches or referees), you are guaranteed a windfall practically every time they play.

Almost 20 years ago, when this writer was independently producing “The Basketball Show,” I was approached by three young businessmen who admitted to betting on college basketball games. They claimed at the time that the games were being rigged. A few weeks later, their report caught the attention of the National Bureau of Investigation. When presented with a written list of alleged point spreads and final scores (which were a 95 percent match), the NBI agents admitted that they were keenly interested, but would have great difficulty in proving who was involved, or even if there was any collusion to begin with. Nothing came of their investigation.

That is the key problem with the scourge of gambling: you can’t prove anything. There are no transaction records, receipts, or other proof of payment. A player can always say he had a bad game or made a mistake that affected the outcome. Though The STAR has been trying to prove unconfirmed reports of unscrupulous online bettors trying to affect results of games to confirm this alleged phenomenon, it would be next to impossible. Even if one could find people involved who would be willing to testify, it would be one man’s word against another’s. All we can do as individuals is to turn away from the temptation of betting if we can’t afford it, and for the people being asked to be involved, for them to decline any offers and avoid hurting the innocent fans who appreciate sports for the way the games should be played.