Japan – The mother of gaming but not betting

Published 2021-04-21 22:50

There is a long history of esports and gaming in Japan. The land of the rising sun has since the 80s, been one of the spearheads of the gaming industry and today Japan is generally considered the third-largest industry in the world when it comes to gaming. However, betting on esports or any kind of gambling online is officially illegal in the country, but it’s not stopping the Japanese people from gambling.  Let’s take a deeper look at the relation between esports and gambling in Japan.

Always a leader in gaming

In the 80s and 90s, almost all the productions within the gaming industry were located in Japan. Companies like Nintendo, Sony and Sega, launched their own gaming consoles and companies like Konami and Namco produced games that people all around the world enjoyed and to this day still do. In the case of video games and gaming, Japan is considered one of the mother countries and still produces great gaming titles and products.

But what about esports?

With this position in mind, it would be natural to think esports is big in Japan. But it is actually a relatively new phenomenon compared to other Asian countries. Already in the mid-1990s, South Korea had so-called PC Bangs, a kind of internet cafés that offered LAN connections. This meant that people for an hourly rate could rent some time online playing their favorite games with other people against each other. Even though it was widespread in South Korea, this culture didn’t apply to Japan in the same fashion.

Now, Japan is a bit complicated when it comes to esports and gambling. Esports games that are most popular on a global level, are not as popular for the Japanese people. But instead of following CS:GO, LoL, Dota 2, Rainbow 6, and all the other big global games, the Japanese people have their own game titles that are huge in their country. So it’s not really fair to say that Japan is “behind” within esports in any way.

Japan will never be “behind” within gaming, never!

The state of gambling in Japan

One of the reasons why esports might have taken a bit of time to manifest itself in Japan is because of their gambling legislation. Gambling is mostly prohibited in the country, except for some parts of horse or motor racing and sumo wrestling. This means that casinos and betting sites haven’t been allowed to operate in Japan the same way they have in Europe or America.

Even though casinos are entirely illegal in Japan, they have had to operate under a different social structure than usual. Some casino businesses are legitimized in certain municipalities because of their social benefits such as creating jobs and maybe even a sense of community. This has been one of the motivators behind legalizing gambling in most parts of Japan. In general, laws against gambling have been around since the beginning of the 20th century in Japan, which means that gambling hasn’t manifested itself as part of the culture there.

It’s a culture thing

It shouldn’t be undermined how the Yakuza used underground gambling as means to finance their endeavors. Therefore, gambling hasn’t had the same reputation in Japan as in Western culture. Since 2018, gambling and especially casinos have found a legal framework within it can operate. This means that instead of the mafia doing all the underground business, the Japanese people might get their share too. But it is still governed under special scrutiny as it is still considered controversial in some areas.

With the rise of both gambling and esports in Japan, it means that we might as well see growth in esports gambling very soon. It might just be a matter of time before they catch up with the rest of the world.

Gambling in Japan is not a problem

Even though gambling and casinos might not be as culturally manifested in Japan as they are in the rest of the world, there are still opportunities, especially online. As always, there are different online casinos available for different needs. If you want to find out more about the online casinos in Japan, you can check out Internetcasino.jp. There are Japanese online casinos with a focus on classic games like poker, sports betting, or slot games.

No problem to bet on sports and play casino

There are plenty of online casinos that are available for Japanese people, that offer great esports, and sports betting. Different esports platforms in Japan offer sports betting options for different sports. Some platforms might even specifically focus on only a few popular sports so you can choose the right platform for you based on the options it offers.

At first, you can try different free platforms to get to know various games and then move on to the platforms or games which require a financial investment. You can also choose a casino based on the bonuses it offers if you want to try out a specific game or online casino platform. The online casinos which specialize in esports have bonuses that will be useful specifically for you who are into sports.

Written by Jarhead

Jarhead is the founder of eSportsbetting.gg and works as a marketing specialist withing iGaming. This guy grew up with gaming and experienced the very first hits on iconic SEGA, Nintento NES, Commodore 64/128, Atari, Amiga 500 and gaming on his very first PC – a 286 beast where he ruled in Ultima V. Jarhead’s favourite games and skills are in Overwatch, Rocket League and Hearthstone.

Source: https://esportsbetting.gg/esports-and-gambling-in-japan