Online gaming in Singapore is heavily regulated, and bettors can only bet through exempt operators in the country. Only Singapore Pools and Singapore Turf Club are exempt, and Singapore Pools has already taken over Turf Club’s horse betting operations.
Singapore Pools is a legal lottery subsidiary company owned by the state that offers both lottery and sports betting options. Singapore Pools serves to combat online gambling in the country using its sports betting offerings that people can access remotely. The Remote Gambling Act banned all forms of online betting in 2014, but Singapore Pools was exempted from this in 2016, effectively allowing people to bet on sports online without going through online casinos and betting sites.
Singapore Pools’ sports betting options are the following:
- Football betting
- Horse Racing
- Motor Racing
Sports bettors can bet safely through Singapore Pools as long as they can differentiate the real Singapore Pools from the fake ones. Many spoof sites have appeared to scam people off their money, including sgpools.online and sgpools.app. Bettors should verify the site’s authenticity through singaporepools.com.sg.
However, many bettors prefer online casinos and foreign sportsbooks because of various reasons, among them are the following:
- Availability of casino games
- Lacklustre Singapore Pools betting options
- Online casino promos and bonuses
- Other betting markets in sportsbooks
- Lower minimum age requirement
Betting through online casinos offers more options than through Singapore Pools, but doing so is illegal. Bettors, however, can continue betting if they want, as long as they do it privately and not announce that they’re betting. Avoiding seasoned bettors who usually stake high and have outstanding debts is a good precautionary move since the authorities will likely have their sights on them.
Singapore Pools is the only legal betting option in the country, but is still just one of the popular betting options in the country besides online casinos. Many gamblers prefer online casinos and foreign sportsbooks for a good reason. For more information about this, check this infographic by CM2Bet.
