Clampdown on illegal Euro betting

Organisers hope that only reputable bookmakers profit from Euro 2000

Police in the Far East are taking steps to crack down on illegal betting during Euro 2000.

European teams command large and loyal followings in south-east Asia and gambling on their games is widespread throughout the region.

The issue of illegal betting and match fixing in Asia has caused controversy in the UK, following a series of high-profile court cases.

A lot of punters are keeping their powder dry for Euro 2000

William Hill spokesman

Last year four men were convicted for their part in a match-fixing plot that involved sabotaging floodlights during English Premiership matches.

And police are determined that gambling on Euro 2000 is not blighted in the same way as it was for the last World Cup.

Forty people were arrested in midnight raids in Hong Kong and Singapore during France 98 after betting syndicates took hundreds of thousands of dollars in illegal bets.

Stake-outs

Now police in Thailand are taking pre-emptive action in an attempt to stamp out the problem, including stake-outs of suspected betting centres.

According to a report in the Bangkok Post newspaper, bookmakers are active in many of Thailand's larger cities and use mobile phones and transfers of money through bank accounts to make their activities hard to detect.

Police are particuarly concerned about the involvement of students in gambling, because they often turn to crime to pay off their debts, the paper said.

Officers have asked the Thai Education Ministry to order schools to take measures against student gambling.

Reputable bookmakers are expecting a huge turn-over for Euro 2000.

William Hill, one of the leading UK gambling agencies, did not take as many bets on the FA Cup final as they had hoped - and spokesman Graham Sharp believed the up-coming tournament had much to do with it.

"I think a lot of punters are keeping their powder dry for Euro 2000," he said.