Illegal gambling drives €3 trillion betting markets

The global sports betting market is worth up to $3,000,000,000,000 (three trillion), the vast majority of that generated by illegal gambling, a United Nations conference on crime being held in Doha has heard.

Patrick Jay, a British-based independent betting expert, said around 65% of that global figure was spent on football betting, with the Asian market the centre of sports gambling.

Tennis and cricket account for a further 12% each of that $3 trillion, said Jay who was speaking at a session on match-fixing in sport at the week-long UN Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, currently being held in Doha.