[Dark Horse]

The government of CR is doing nothing to make sure that books follow the law (if there even is such a thing in CR). That would seem an ideal climate for scam books. Americans are being scammed out of millions of dollars. So why would we play in CR at all? The Islands (Antilles) and Panama offer much better protection.

What percentage of scams comes from Costa Rica, compared to Antigua, Panama, and Bahamas? And what is the role of government in each country to oversee books?

Recent scam books SBG/Betroyal, Cascade, and not sure how many sportsbook.com owned books, are broadcasting from CR. Not one book in the SBR posters top 5 is located in CR (and only one in the SBR top five).

Boycott Costa Rica. At least until their government shows it's willing to protect US players. Right now, Costa Rica might as well be Nigeria.

[Dark Horse]

I guess this is not going to be a very popular topic.


If we boycott CR books, wouldn't the good books there start to press the CR government to go after the scam books?

[bigboydan]

Originally Posted by Dark Horse

If we boycott CR books, wouldn't the good books there start to press the CR government to go after the scam books?

I don't think it's all cut and dry really DH.

I think the good books should put the pressure on the CR government in order to weed out the bad ones.

[Dark Horse]

Originally Posted by bigboydan

I think the good books should put the pressure on the CR government in order to weed out the bad ones.

I agree. But they don't really have an incentive to make it a priority. Up to gamblers to make a fist.

[gotsteam]

The government here in CR doesnt care about Costa Ricans, let alone Americans, Europeans or anyone else.

Their are no laws for sportsbooks and whatever laws are on the books do not and never will be enforced.

The country simply lacks funds and funds for infrastructure to do so.

Boycotting as you call it will accomplish nothing

Sad and unfortunate truth

[Dark Horse]

That sounds like Nigeria to me. In a climate like that corruption rules. So why would Americans play there, when they can play in much more regulated countries?

[4FUN.AND$$]

I think you have a good point. I use a local after barley getting out of sportsbook.com before the issues arrived with payouts. I really don't know what the percentage of US population gamble but the question I would have is how many people that gamble actually have trouble collecting or some other problem ? 5% ? I see a ton of issues on this forum but have wondered how many people actually get stiffed ?

[WileOut]

4Fun it really depends on how many people are able to find this forum and others like it that give info about how safe certain books are. If you dont find forums like SBR how are you supposed to know if the book is good or not? They all have good looking websites so you cant go by that.

What blows me away are a few of the people here on this forum posting that they are thinking about or actually playing at lower rated books. It makes me dumbfounded. They manage to find this forum and the hundreds of posts warning them not to play at certain places because they have little to no chance of getting their money back. Doesnt matter to them, their IQ simply cant process what it means that they will send money out and not get it back.

[idontlikerocks]

usually gamblers send money out and don't get any back anyhows, because they lose it all. at least with these big bonuses, losers might play a bit longer.....

[4FUN.AND$$]

I am very glad SBR does what it does as I have been coming here for 2 years and reading. It seems like they get their time wasted by many people who are less than truthful about the circumstances. That has somewhat clouded my judgment of how many people have real issues. DH is right about making some books accountable for their actions by the local government but I just don't know how it can be done in CR. I have spent a ton of time there in CR and it seems like a tourist attraction only and if I was not a gambler I would not even know there were book sin CR.

[donnyguru]

When I was looking to get into online betting in 2002 I was lucky enough to find SBR, and their new players guide warned then (and still does) that Costa Rica is inferior to most of the rest of the bookmaking world. And although I certainly like a nice bonus and opinionated line, staying out of CR and in above B- books has kept me dispute-free so far. But this is just a passionate hobby for me. A professional or an arber might have a different risk tolerance than I.

I would never send money anywhere without a spin through the SBR guide and a forum search here.

[SBR_John]

You are all correct. Costa Rica does not care and its a great place to run a scam. Sportsbook.com, Cascade and SBG are all scams that openly steal and then laugh about it.

[Mason]

I agree there is a serious lack of regulation here in CR, but it's also a numbers game IMO.

The fact of the matter is there are far more sportsbooks in Costa Rica than all other offshore jurisdictions combined.

That being said, your money is no safer in Panama (See betPanAm). BetUS, AbsolutePoker and tons of online pharmacys moving there make me feel no better about it's future propects either.

Antilles? While it's believed to be safer due to regulation, with master and sub liscenes anyone can get one. Anyone! The obvious Aces Gold fiasco happened there and if I'm not mistaken Yahoops, BetCuraNet and others have folded and not paid as well.

Many people think Antigua is the safest offshore jurisdiction and it may well be, but that didn't help BOS players when the shit hit the fan either.

In summary Costa Rica is the least regulated, but with so many more sportsbooks than the other juridictions it's unfair to boycot CR altogether IMO. Bookmaker, 5Dimes and other quality books are located here and run a fair game.

My .02

[magnavox]

I believe BCN paid everyone.

[priceperheadexpert]

Gentlemen..No doubt its a extremely volatile environment now..The scam books you describe were top rated until situations arose that buried them..With CASCADE..they are in business..Its the job of sites like this one to get them to make payout arrangements with those that are owed..If that becomes impossible, anyone who continues to wager there has to realize the outcome will not be good..

The credit side is getting stronger..PPH shops are now at times more preferable to the player..The real pros are in those shops now, doing a very competent job..

The trees are shaking and the bad apples are falling out..The industry is getting smaller, but those who are surviving are innovators..

CR is still where I believe the best books remain..If you look at the books in trouble, and the people who run those books, its not surprising to see the chaos..There are many viable options still in the market on the credit and post up sides..

[MrX]

So what is the safest location for a book from the player's point of view? Australia, maybe?

[curious]

Originally Posted by Dark Horse

I guess this is not going to be a very popular topic.


If we boycott CR books, wouldn't the good books there start to press the CR government to go after the scam books?

The government of Costa Rica does not even recognize online betting as an industry. The online sportsbooks are licensed as call centers, or data centers, or ISPs, or something equally innocent. The online sportsbooks have created thousands of jobs. The government of Costa Rica has been talking for years about regulating and licensing the online sportsbooks, but they won't do that. They won't do it because as soon as they recognize that industry they have to actually do something about it and that will jeopardize some of those jobs.

You would think that they would understand that one company doing something to hurt the image of online sportsbetting hurts them in the long run but they don't care about the long run.

[ritehook]

What Mason said. Right on, basically.

IMO none of the Caribbean nations are totally safe havens for those sending money to wager. The infrastructure and the cultural traditions are just not there, and what we call corruption is a way of life.

Something that is hard for those not familiar with these lands to comprehend. There is a kind of "imperial" mindset, that thinks these lands with very different traditions are or should be little duplicates of the US of A.

Legalisms are always overcome by culture, by racial proclivities. Some S. American nations copied almost directly the American Constitution as their own. Think they became clones of the US?

I don't think Jamaica, even with the Brit tradition, is different. The great majority of the population have roots in West Africa. I recall a few years back that the govt there moved against the Greek operation.

I suspect the main reason was that the under the table payments went to the wrong person, or got fouled up somehow. Once the off-the-books slicing got straightened out everything was OK. But when a new govt hand gets outstretched again there could be another problem.

Sure, Australia, with its Brit tradition and Brit-derived peoples, is regulated and safe. But we Americans can't bet there . . .

[Zeroed]

Originally Posted by Dark Horse

If we boycott CR books, wouldn't the good books there start to press the CR government to go after the scam books?

Sadly most people are either stupid, or they don´t care, or they understand it but forget it again.

Look at places like the RX where those scam books are still welcome..most regular posters know about the scams, and there is usually a thread about it going.

And the next day? They will keep posting as if nothing happened, forcing the RX to do..absolutely nothing. Even some of the SBR guys here will say "the RX is basically ok, but.. blah blah blah".

Nothing will change, its all a big mess and all you can do is to be smarter than the many fools out there.

[SBR_John]

Lot of good posts in this thread. Good post Zeroed.

Things have improved since the late 90's and early 2000's when scams were rampant.

I always hoped that the promoting industry like TheRx and Covers would choose not to promote the scams. This would force the books to play fair or be stuck out. It didn't happen. The scam books have a higher profit margin and use those profits to buy off the forums and other promoting sites.

[pico]

Originally Posted by SBR_John

You are all correct. Costa Rica does not care and its a great place to run a scam. Sportsbook.com, Cascade and SBG are all scams that openly steal and then laugh about it.

i am just curious, why is sbr in costa rica?