Online cockfighting is one of the Philippines solutions to dwindling gambling tax revenues, but could it sabotage another important vertical? The Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) says they’ve seen lower sales since e-sabong blew up in 2020.

Although online cockfighting is still not legal and regulated, it’s increasing in popularity, and PCSO general manager Royina Garma says that’s a problem. “Definitely, lottery sales are affected by online sabong,” Garma said.

The problem is that cockfighting itself is typically legal. “As far as I know, [the cockpit is] legal because they have permits from local governments. But online cockfights are illegal,” Garma said.

She urged the Philippine National Police, National Bureau of Investigation and local government to go after illegal online offerings. Local governments in particular, who issue permits for cockpits, should investigate if any online offering is coming from their territory. Start looking for webcams, boys!