Bets may be approved on HK national soccer side

Gamblers might be allowed to bet on matches involving the Hong Kong soccer team if it makes it to the finals of international tournaments, under a new government proposal.

The Secretary for Home Affairs, Patrick Ho Chi-ping, is proposing to give himself special powers to grant permission for betting on the Hong Kong team on a 'case-by-case' basis.

Disclosing for the first time a legislative framework on betting on international soccer matches, the Home Affairs Bureau insists that betting on local teams should be banned to prevent match fixing. But officials say the home affairs secretary should be allowed to give special permission.

'The rationale is that we need to preserve the possibility of allowing betting on international football tournaments on a case-by-case basis, where a Hong Kong team is able to enter the final stage, [and] if a strong demand for betting on such matches has been established,' the bureau said in a paper.

The Hong Kong Jockey Club is required to set up a subsidiary company to run soccer betting.

The club will also have to establish another company to run the Mark Six lottery. Officials said the separate accounts would ensure that risks involved in soccer betting would not affect other businesses.