bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

sponsorType

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

Agence France-Presse

In a raucous cockpit in the Philippines, Dennis de la Cruz grins from ear to ear as he watches his roosters slash their opponents to death in a frenzy of blood and feathers.
Shut for two years during the Covid-19 pandemic, traditional cockfighting arenas are getting back to full capacity across the archipelago nation.
Cockfighting is hugely popular in the Philippines, where millions of dollars are bet on matches every week.
Roosters wearing bladed leg spurs go beak to beak in a brutal fight to the death, as spectators – mostly men – wager on the result.

Supporters defend the blood sport as being part of the Filipino identity and argue the birds would be eaten if they did not fight.
But opponents maintain it is cruel and should be banned, as it is in many other countries.
“In our village, more than half the residents are cock fighters,” said de la Cruz, 64, at a recent derby in San Pedro, a city south of Manila, where he fell one win short of the 1 million peso (US$17,000) champion’s pot.
The son of a long-time cockpit operator, de la Cruz said he had never held a regular job. Instead, he relied on his winnings from the roosters bred by his nephews on a large farm.


In a country plagued by inequality, cockfighting is a unique “neutral zone” where rich and poor mingle and play by the same rules, said University of the Philippines anthropologist Chester Cabalza.
Adhering to a strict honour code, spectators before the pandemic used hand signals like stock brokers to lay their bets during a match that can last less than a minute.
It is common for a single fight to draw 300,000-400,000 pesos (US$5,000-US$6,700) in bets, one aficionado said.

After each fight – there are 15 per hour – crumpled banknotes are flung towards the winning bettor.
Losers welshing on bets run the risk of being attacked.
When cockpits reopened, regulators wary of spreading the coronavirus through excessive crowd interaction ordered operators to install betting machines, so winners could collect their money from the cashier instead.
“If your cock wins, you stride out of the ring like a tough guy – you exude a macho image,” said gamefowl breeder Edwin Lumbres, thrusting his chest out for emphasis. “But if you lose, you hang your head and shuffle out like somebody whose manhood is suspect.”

Katrina Del Espiritu Santo, of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, is pushing for cockfighting to be banned as the birds are “forced to fight to the death”.
But the activist’s efforts have failed to gain much traction in the Philippines.
Fighting roosters are ubiquitous across the country and are prized possessions – despite their loud crowing at all hours.
A bird can cost between 3,000-15,000 pesos (US$51-US$255) depending on its parents’ win record.
Fighting fowls are kept in wire cages outside homes in urban areas or in triangular shelters on farms that dot the countryside.
As cockpits fell silent at the start of the pandemic, many small breeders could not afford to feed their flocks and were forced to sell roosters at fire sale prices – or throw them in the cooking pot.
Others admitted staging illegal fights to make ends meet.
Cuba publishes animal-welfare law – but cockfights are still permitted
To revive the sport and get revenue flowing into government coffers drained by the Covid-19 response, former president Rodrigo Duterte issued permits to seven outfits to operate online cockfighting.
Known as e-sabong, fights were held in empty arenas and streamed 24 hours a day, allowing people to place minimum bets of 200 pesos (US$3.40) per fight on their mobile phones.
The sport’s popularity exploded – and so did the earnings.
People who had never watched cockfighting before began betting, while large breeding farms saw demand for their fowl surge.
Duterte said the national government was raking in 640 million pesos (US$10.9 million) a month in fees – even as the economy tanked.
It was also lucrative for e-sabong operators.

Charlie Ang, who runs Lucky 8 Star Quest, told a Senate inquiry this year that Filipinos wagered between 1-2 billion pesos (US$17 million -US$34 million) on his platform every day, which he claimed accounted for about 95 per cent of e-sabong bets.
But the disappearance earlier in the year of 34 cockfighting workers, who are feared dead, and reports of gamblers being driven to financial ruin revealed the seedy side of e-sabong.
Some punters reportedly killed themselves, while a woman was arrested for allegedly selling her baby to pay off debts.
Under growing pressure from the public and lawmakers, Duterte reluctantly shut down online cockfighting soon before his term ended in June.
But as pandemic restrictions eased in the past year, local governments began giving traditional cockpit operators permission to resume fights – to the relief of millions of Filipinos.
“People were angry because their favourite pastime was taken away,” said Dondon Clanor, 45, a cockfighting enthusiast. “Now everyone is happy.”


Can Manila’s South China Sea strategy of defiance and diplomacy hold?

ICE releases detained Filipino after ‘unreasonable failures of care’

Philippine senators Go, Dela Rosa helped Duterte wage drug war: ICC prosecutors

How Asean can resolve its Myanmar dilemma post-election

The Philippines

Philippine cockfights more popular than ever, despite efforts to shut down blood sport

Roosters fight during a cockfighting match at the San Pedro Coliseum in Laguna province. Photo: AFP

Gamecocks fight during a cockfighting match at the San Pedro Coliseum in Laguna province, Philippines. Photo: AFP

A man places his bet on a cockfighting match at the San Pedro Coliseum in Laguna province. Photo: AFP

Gamefarm owner Jo Hernandez tends to his roosters in Dolores, Quezon, Philippines. Photo: AFP

Shut for two years during the Covid-19 pandemic, traditional cockfighting arenas have reopened across the nation. Photo: AFP

Philippines online cockfighting boom triggers Senate scrutiny, calls for tighter regulations and revenue share

Roosters in a fight that was broadcast online from Sta Cruz, Laguna, south of Manila. Photo: TNS

A rooster bleeds after taking part in cockfighting. Photo: AP

Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte vows to ban online cockfighting known as ‘e-sabong’

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said he will order the termination of online cockfighting operations. Photo: Reuters

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte gestures as he meets cabinet officials at the Malacanang presidential palace in Manila, Philippines on March 7. Photo: Malacanang Presidential Photographers Division via AP

Curved stainless steel dagger lie on a table as Filipino handlers attach one to a cock’s foot before a bout in Quezon City, Manila. File photo: Reuters

Philippine policeman killed by rooster during raid on illegal cockfight

Cockfighting is a popular blood sport in the Philippines. Photo: AP

In the Philippines’ intense 600km homing pigeon race, birds face the threats of searing heat, being eaten and even kidnapping

Jaime Lim shows one of his racing pigeons at his home in Manila. Photo: AFP

In this photo taken on March 28, 2019, an employee of Philippine pigeon homing association tags a pigeon taking part in the MacArthur competition, the longest homing pigeon race in the Philippines, in Manila. - It is a brutal 600-kilometre gauntlet during which competitors face searing heat, wild seas, vicious predators, and the threat of kidnapping. This is the MacArthur competition -- the Philippines' longest homing pigeon race. It's a tough challenge for the birds and a tense affair for the owners. (Photo by Ted ALJIBE / AFP) / TO GO WITH Philippine-lifestyle-animal-pigeon, FEATURE by Cecil MORELLA

In this photo taken on March 25, 2019, Jaime Lim, one of the Philippines' best-known pigeon fanciers, shows one of his racing pigeons at his home in Manila. - It is a brutal 600-kilometre gauntlet during which competitors face searing heat, wild seas, vicious predators, and the threat of kidnapping. This is the MacArthur competition -- the Philippines' longest homing pigeon race. It's a tough challenge for the birds and a tense affair for the owners. (Photo by Ted ALJIBE / AFP) / TO GO WITH Philippine-lifestyle-animal-pigeon, FEATURE by Cecil MORELLA

In this photo taken on March 28, 2019, pigeon fanciers queue to register their birds at the office of the Philippine pigeon homing association's office, before they take part in the MacArthur competition, the longest homing pigeon race in the Philippines, in Manila. - It is a brutal 600-kilometre gauntlet during which competitors face searing heat, wild seas, vicious predators, and the threat of kidnapping. This is the MacArthur competition -- the Philippines' longest homing pigeon race. It's a tough challenge for the birds and a tense affair for the owners. (Photo by Ted ALJIBE / AFP) / TO GO WITH Philippine-lifestyle-animal-pigeon, FEATURE by Cecil MORELLA

In this photo taken on March 28, 2019, a pigeon hobbyist shows off one of his birds at his home inside a cemetery in Manila. - It is a brutal 600-kilometre gauntlet during which competitors face searing heat, wild seas, vicious predators, and the threat of kidnapping. This is the MacArthur competition -- the Philippines' longest homing pigeon race. It's a tough challenge for the birds and a tense affair for the owners. (Photo by Ted ALJIBE / AFP) / TO GO WITH Philippine-lifestyle-animal-pigeon, FEATURE by Cecil MORELLA

In this photo taken on March 28, 2019, a pigeon fancier registers her birds at the office of the Philippine pigeon homing association's office, before they take part in the MacArthur competition, the longest homing pigeon race in the Philippines, in Manila. - It is a brutal 600-kilometre gauntlet during which competitors face searing heat, wild seas, vicious predators, and the threat of kidnapping. This is the MacArthur competition -- the Philippines' longest homing pigeon race. It's a tough challenge for the birds and a tense affair for the owners. (Photo by Ted ALJIBE / AFP) / TO GO WITH Philippine-lifestyle-animal-pigeon, FEATURE by Cecil MORELLA

Culture or cruelty? Camel fighting persists in Pakistan despite ban

Pakistani owners separate their camels with sticks. Photo: AFP

In this photo taken on February 10, 2019, owners celebrate after a traditional camel fight at an annual festival in Rajin Shah in Layyah District. - Thousands cheer as a caravan of camels outfitted in decoratives saddles and garlands lumber across a dusty pitch to fight -- a sport that is officially banned in Pakistan but remains popular. (Photo by SS MIRZA / AFP)

Pakistani owners look at their camels fighting during a traditional camel fight at an annual festival in Kot Rajin Shah in district Layyah in Punjab province on February 10, 2019. (Photo by SS MIRZA / AFP)

News

Asia

Southeast Asia


Shut for two years during the pandemic, traditional cockfighting arenas are getting back to full capacity across the country
To help revive the sport and increase revenue following Covid-19, former president Rodrigo Duterte issued permits for online cockfighting



Shut for two years during the Covid-19 pandemic, traditional cockfighting arenas are getting back to full capacity across the archipelago nation.


Animals