Online gambling and teens in the Philippines
Online casinos, betting apps and "color games" are heavily promoted to Filipino youth. The signs your teen is gambling, and how to help.
- Gambling is illegal for minors in the Philippines, but online gambling ads and apps reach teens easily.
- Watch for unexplained money, e-wallet activity, secrecy, and talk of easy wins.
- Talk early about how gambling is designed to make players lose, and get help if it's become a problem.
Online gambling has spread rapidly in the Philippines: online casinos, sports betting, e-sabong (online cockfighting, banned in 2022) and its successors, and "color game", card and slot apps. Ads appear on social media, in videos by influencers, and in links shared in group chats. Many reach teenagers.
The law
Gambling is not allowed for minors in the Philippines. Licensed casinos and gaming operators generally require players to be at least 21. Many online gambling sites, though, are unlicensed or operate from abroad, and age checks can be weak or absent.
In 2025, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas ordered e-wallets to remove links to online gambling sites from their apps, and Congress has debated tighter controls. Even so, gambling content remains easy for teens to find.
How teens get drawn in
- Influencers and streamers promoting gambling sites, sometimes as "games"
- Ads promising big, easy wins
- Friends sharing links and wins in group chats
- Gacha and loot boxes, which build familiarity with chance-based spending. See loot boxes and gacha games.
- E-wallets that make depositing quick and easy
- "Easy money" culture: pressure to earn quickly, especially in hard times
Warning signs
- Unexplained money: sudden cash, or money disappearing
- Unusual e-wallet or load activity
- Borrowing money from friends or family, or selling belongings
- Talk of "wins", "bets", "odds" or specific sites
- Secrecy about the phone, especially late at night
- Mood swings linked to winning and losing
- Falling grades, skipping school
Talk about it
- How gambling works: the house always wins over time. Sites are designed so that players lose more than they win.
- Influencer promotions: they're paid, and they often show only wins, sometimes with fake money.
- Chasing losses: trying to win back losses is how small losses become big ones.
- Money mules: teens are sometimes recruited to lend e-wallet accounts for gambling or scam money, which is a crime. See scams that target kids.
Reduce exposure
- Block gambling apps and sites with parental controls and a family DNS filter.
- Report gambling ads and content on social media.
- Watch e-wallet activity for younger teens, and keep adult accounts separate.
If your teen is gambling
- Stay calm. Shame drives gambling underground.
- Find out the extent: how much, how often, where, and any debts.
- Limit access to money temporarily: e-wallets, cards, cash.
- Block sites and apps.
- Get help. Talk to a doctor, school guidance counsellor or mental health professional. PAGCOR runs a responsible gaming programme, including ways to exclude a person from licensed gaming; check its website. If your teen seems hopeless or in crisis, call the NCMH crisis hotline 1553.
Problem gambling is a recognised health condition, not a moral failing. Teens can and do recover with support.
eGuard sets up screen time, bedtime and app rules on your child's phone and checks that each one is really on. Free for one child.