AFP

Tuesday, July 7, 2026 15:42 | 2-minute read

Two illegal betting networks dismantled during the World Cup.

Vietnamese police on Tuesday arrested 85 people linked to two illegal betting networks, describing their operations as 'exceptional in scale', after the value of their financial transactions reached about $133 million, as part of a campaign by authorities to combat illegal gambling coinciding with the World Cup competitions.

Vietnam, with its communist system, bans online gambling activities, but illegal betting networks remain active and generate large profits, prompting authorities to carry out periodic security campaigns, especially during major international sports tournaments.

Police in Ho Chi Minh City said in a statement that the raids carried out in late June targeted two networks operating on a 'very large scale', characterized by a 'hierarchical organizational structure and a high level of control and discipline'.

The statement added that the two networks had recorded, since last October, illegal financial transactions estimated at about $133 million.

The leaders of the two networks admitted, according to police, that they obtained 'master betting accounts from individuals in Cambodia', before dividing them into a large number of agent and member accounts and distributing them to gamblers online.

The Vietnamese Ministry of Public Security announced last week that police dismantled 73 networks across the country and detained 346 suspects for their involvement in illegal activities and betting on football matches during the first 20 days of the World Cup.

The statement quoted Colonel Bui Tuan Anh from the Ministry of Public Security as saying, 'The total amount of money circulated in these cases reached thousands of billions of dong, equivalent to hundreds of millions of dollars.'

Canada, Mexico, and the United States are hosting the World Cup matches this year, with the final to be held on July 19.

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