Gambling in the Republic of Korea
Casino gambling in North and South Korea is like a doughnut in a bakery — only the visitors can taste it. The countries do not allow their residents to participate in gambling activities provided by casino establishments, and they only provide gaming services to foreign visitors. However, there are always exceptions; and just like any unscrupulous baker, the locals are sometimes still able to take a bite of the Forbidden fruit and discover all the pleasures of casino games; even if this can only be done illegally.
As for other forms of gambling, the Republic of Korea (South Korea) is more indulgent compared to its neighbor the Democratic People’s Republic (North Korea), and it offers its inhabitants several kinds of entertainment.
In South Korea gambling is a crime under Chapter 23 of the Criminal Act. Article 246 stipulates that a person gambling for the purpose of gaining property shall be punished with a fine of not more than five million won. Because we have so many forms of legal gambling here now, this has been amended to exempt gambling which is for momentary pleasure. This same section also stipulates that habitual gamblers be punished by a prison sentence up to 3-years or a fine up to 20 million won.
Something not found elsewhere when looking at Gambling Laws by Country, is this law applies to citizens even when they are abroad. It is a crime for Koreans to play casino in Macau, Las Vegas or anywhere else that is outside our borders. This is not simply a law that is only on the books and then never enforced. Shin Jung-hwan is the former singer of the group Rula and made the news over this.
The government is obviously keen on maintaining its monopoly on sports gambling, as a large percentage of the profits from this are ploughed back into the sports that are bet on. However, despite the step-up in criminal captures and convictions, illegal gambling (both online and on land) is still a thriving business in the country. With the gradual relaxation or repeals of physical gambling laws, the South Korean government will no doubt look to see if the integration of online gambling could be beneficial to its Sports Toto franchise.
Horse racing in South Korea traces back to May 1898, when a foreign language institute run by the government included a donkey race in its athletic rally. However, this type of racing was sponsored for entertainment purposes only. 파워볼게임 No betting was conducted. It was in 1920s that 'modern' horse racing involving a betting system made its debut. In 1922, the Chosun Racing Club, the nation's first-ever authorized horse racing club, was established to make horse racing more systematic and better organized. In 1923, the pari-mutuel betting system was officially adopted for the first time in Korea. The Sinseol-dong racecourse opened in 1928 and incorporated racing clubs were allowed to have their own race courses.
