No wagering on World Cup, Phnom Penh warns prospective punters [-Wanna bet wagering won't happen?]

Tue, 08 Jun 2010
DPA

Phnom Penh -Cambodian authorities have warned they will arrest anyone trying to bet on the upcoming World Cup football tournament, local media reported Tuesday.

The tournament starts in South Africa on June 11.

Phnom Penh's police chief Touch Naruth said the announcement fits with a ban on all forms of gambling decreed by Prime Minister Hun Sen in February 2009.

"We know that some countries in the world allow betting on the World Cup, but Cambodia will not allow it," he told the Phnom Penh Post newspaper.

"We are strictly standing by the decision of Prime Minister Hun Sen to eliminate all forms of gambling," he said, adding that the prohibition extends to foreigners too.

The government last year outlawed all forms of gambling by Cambodians citing a link between the practice and a perceived decline in moral standards.

Casinos were not affected since Cambodian citizens are in theory barred from entering them except to work.

A local police chief told the newspaper that officials would be on the lookout for transgressors.

"If any commune police chief ignores illegal betting, he will face being fired from his post," said Born Sam Ath.

Cambodian police step up security after football riot

Fans of the Cambodian team hold signs reading the score they expect: 10 for Cambodian, 0 for Brunei. However, the final score was only a 2-0 win by Cambodia (Photo: Sam-Aun, Koh Santepheap newspaper)

Aug 27, 2007
DPA

Phnom Penh - Cambodian authorities said Monday they have stepped up security ahead of Monday's scheduled football match against Malaysia's Under-17 side, after a brief outbreak of violence following Cambodia's victory over Brunei.

Cambodia is hosting the Association of South-east Asian Nations Football Federation's Under-17 championship, which features teams including Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Laos, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

The Cambodian team scored a strong 2-0 victory over Brunei on Saturday night, but a small section of the crowd who had apparently bet on a wider winning margin were not satisfied and police estimate that up to 200 people rioted, smashing bus and car windows and throwing bottles.

The rowdy crowd was quickly subdued after at least one shot was fired in the air by police deployed as security for the game.

Cambodian football authorities denied allegations that they deliberately held back the winning margin, admitting that the team had saved itself for the match against Malaysia but that goal-scoring attempts were kept to a minimum by the defensive tactics of the Brunei side.

'We will have extra men on alert at the game tonight to ensure the same problem does not happen again,' a police source who declined to be named said Monday.

Football betting is legal in Cambodia, although a massive illegal bookmaking network also continues to operate. The practice is so widespread it has been blamed on skyrocketing crime rates after major tournaments such as the World Cup, when losers turn to desperate measures to try to recoup sometimes huge losses.