South Asia has always had a gray betting market. The reason behind this is because most South Asia countries, including Bangladesh, have a strict ban on land-based gambling. For instance, if you go to Bangladesh, you won’t find any local gambling establishments, such as casinos or betting shops. However, this gets interesting through the fact that Bangladesh and many other South Asia countries don’t have specific laws surrounding online gambling, which has effectively created the gray betting market problem found today. It can be quite confusing from the outside, so this guide is going to explain everything you need to know about Bangladesh gambling.

Is Gambling Legal in Bangladesh? 

Gambling is prohibited in Bangladesh — but this excludes horse racing. Horse racing is officially regulated by the Bangladesh Race Control Authority (BRCA). 

Aside from horse racing, you aren’t legally allowed to bet on other sports if you live in Bangladesh. However, it’s still quite common for Bangladesh citizens to bet on cricket, football, and other major sports using the best betting sites in Bangladesh. They are able to do this because there are no specific Bangladesh laws in place that ban online gambling. Instead, only in-person gambling is banned. For example, The Public Gambling Act 1867 declares casino gambling illegal in Bangladesh, but there’s no mention of online gambling sites. 

The Rise of Online Gambling in Bangladesh 

Online gambling is becoming more popular in Bangladesh year-by-year. But because the law surrounding it is very much unclear, it’s left online gambling operators moving around in what can only be labelled as a “gray area”. In other words, online gambling is allowed — but the law could change very quickly. As of 2024, though, over 50 online gambling operators are currently being accessed by people living in Bangladesh. 

Bangladesh Legal Gambling Age 

Because Bangladesh has banned land-based gambling, it doesn’t have a legal gambling age. What this means is that any Bangladesh citizens who want to access offshore gambling sites must be above the legal age specified by the operator, which is usually 18 or 21. Anyone under the legal gambling age won’t be allowed to play. 

The Most Popular Types of Online Gambling Sites 

Throughout South Asia and the rest of the world, the most popular gambling sites are:

✅ Online casinos 

✅ Social casinos 

✅ Sportsbooks 

Online casinos provide people with a platform to play all of their favourite casino games online, including video poker, slots, roulette, and more. Social casinos are almost identical, except you play using virtual currencies (Gold Coins and Sweeps Coins) instead of real money. And with sportsbooks, you can place bets on different sporting events and matches, from the NFL to the NBA.

The Future of Gambling in Bangladesh

Because gambling is prohibited in Bangladesh and most of South Asia, it seems unlikely that there will be any major changes to the law moving forward. However, people in South Asia countries will still be able to access offshore online gambling sites from other countries, which is a useful alternative for those looking to place bets online.