Bellingcat Investigation Delves Into 1XBet’s Dark Secrets

Bellingcat, the famous Netherlands-based investigative journalism group, has shed light on the murky activities of 1xBet, one of the world’s most infamous gambling operators. Despite being banned in several countries and with its founders facing international arrest warrants, 1xBet has remained active thanks to its intricate and widespread web of illegal betting activities, many of which involve underage and amateur sports.

A Legacy of Illicit Operations
1xBet has become notorious in the gambling world due to its blatant disregard for regulations. The operator lost its UK license in 2019 after an investigation by The Sunday Times revealed its involvement in a reported “pornhub casino,” bets on children’s sports, and illegal advertising activities. 1xBet is also banned in Russia and Ukraine but still maintains a significant presence in these countries.

Bellingcat’s report shows that 1xBet remains true to its tested strategies, arranging thousands of live-streamed amateur sports events, most with fake teams or young athletes, sometimes with children as young as 14. The company broadcasts these tournaments to a global audience of bettors, primarily in Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus.

One of the most intriguing revelations is 1xBet’s extensive betting system based on “short football,” a game similar to futsal but with amateur teams playing high-speed 10- to 12-minute matches. Bellingcat discovered over 1,200 of these games live-streamed on 1xBet in a single 24-hour period, suggesting an industrial-scale operation with potentially half a million games broadcast annually.

Illegal Gambling Transcends Wars
Bellingcat, alongside sports investigative platform Josimar, managed to geolocate some of the venues used for these illicit operations. A children’s football school in the Russian city of Bryansk was one of the most prominent venues. Disturbingly, the illegal matches happen in front of the students, with one livestream even seeing a small child run onto the pitch.

The investigative group discovered that the football school is partnered with Putin’s United Russia Party and Gazprom, Russia’s leading energy supplier. These operations have continued undisturbed despite 1xBet’s ban in Russia and an international arrest warrant for its three founders. Such findings could indicate either indifference or even complicity by local authorities.

In some of the photos, children are shown perusing militaria and posing with rifles in the same arena the 1xBet games are streamed from.

Bellingcat report
Belarus is another nation hosting 1xBet content despite the operator’s blocked status there. The operator regularly hosts content from a Minsc venue called the Avante Club. Ukraine likewise banned 1xBet after Russia’s 2022 invasion due to ties with the Russian government. However, Kyiv’s Svoi Arena streamed basketball content to bettors as recently as last month.

The investigation revealed that 1xBet paid young Russian players to participate in games that were reportedly fixed. Josimar highlighted the experience of one young athlete who played football in shifts for hours, performing for a gambling audience. Critics say the leagues are part of a growing scourge on sports integrity, exploiting underage athletes and undermining fair competition.

1xBet’s enduring popularity can be traced to its use of illegal streaming as a recruitment tool. Advertisements for the firm routinely pop up on pirated streams of major sporting events, TV shows, and films. 1xBet is the most prominent advertiser on illegal streaming sites, with its logos plastered over stolen broadcasts of high-profile boxing matches, popular TV shows, and Hollywood blockbusters.

Despite the operator’s blatant disregard for rules and regulations, it maintains high-profile sponsorship deals with leading football clubs. While Premier League teams like Chelsea and Liverpool cut ties with the operator following a 2019 investigation into its unethical practices,1xBet still maintains lucrative partnerships with Paris Saint-Germain and FC Barcelona. The clubs have declined to comment on this affiliation.

Regulators Appear Powerless
1xBet’s reach extends far beyond its main web page. It works through an extended structure of mirror websites, whereby users can still log into services in jurisdictions where gambling is heavily regulated or prohibited. These mirror sites generate millions of additional monthly visits, further expanding 1xBet’s global footprint.

The company’s questionable methods have drawn criticism from industry insiders and legal experts. Ismail Vali, chief executive of online gambling monitoring firm Yield Sec, noted that the amateur sports teams were merely a gateway to riskier, more lucrative forms of gambling and brought relatively little revenue on their own. 

Nobody’s on Ukrainian children’s basketball for 35 minutes and placing high-value bets with any frequency. The big play here is always to get the customers to casino because the profit margin there is far higher.

Ismail Vali, Yield Sec CEO
Despite its global notoriety, 1xBet has stayed one step ahead of regulators. The Bellingcat report paints a damning picture of a company that has exploited vulnerable athletes, manipulated online audiences, and flouted international gambling laws while raking in billions in revenue. For now, 1xBet remains an operator with vast reach, sophisticated methods, and a complete disregard for ethical boundaries.