Despite Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) cooperation with surrogate betting companies in Pakistan, including their partnership with Dafa News, Babar Azam (Pakistan Cricket Team Captain) and Mohammad Rizwan together, rejected the offer of crores of rupees from these organisations, The News has revealed.
Pakistan cricket team’s wicketkeeper Muhammad Rizwan came under intense pressure and was asked by the Board to delete his tweet in which he dedicated the team’s historic win against Sri Lanka to the Palestinians.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has accepted sponsorship as a surrogate betting sponsor like Dafa News in flagrant violation of the rules, allegedly to operate on all digital platforms. It has opened the floodgates to more than 150 illegal surrogate betting sites and apps, and some PSL franchises are reportedly allowing individual players to accept shirt logos and give image rights to these illegal gambling companies.
One player revealed on condition of anonymity that PCB came under pressure from ICC and BCCI, asking Mohammad Rizwan to delete his tweet in which Rizwan dedicated Pakistan’s victory against Sri Lanka in CCWC 2023 was named after the people of Gaza.
However, Rizwan refused to delete his tweet. Sources from one of the gambling companies also revealed that Babar Azam turned down an annual contract worth Rs 250 million while Mohammad Rizwan turned down a surrogate betting company’s Rs 100 million annual contract because such sponsorships and contracts are against the law.
Email sent by betting company to Babar Azam
It should be noted that Multan Sultans captain Muhammad Rizwan refused to put WOLF777 logo on his kit during the last PSL tournament. An email sent by 1XBET betting company to Babar Azam said that the company was impressed by the player’s social media platform and wanted to work with the individual. However, Saia Corporation, which is responsible for Babar Azam’s individual sponsorships, responded by saying, “Thank you. As Muslims, we do not endorse any betting or surrogate betting brands. Thanks for getting in touch. Have a nice day.” This email is also available to The News. A similar offer was also made to Muhammad Rizwan, to which the answer was the same.
PCB gave the image rights of Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan to these betting companies against their will. Sources said that Babar, Rizwan, and others have categorically refused to sign contracts with such companies yet PCB has given us their image rights along with PSL franchises.
Sources said that some Pakistan Super League franchises also forced players to wear the logos of these surrogate betting companies at any cost, which is a clear violation of the players’ rights to freedom of expression and liberty.
PCB spokesperson statement:
When contacted, a PCB spokesperson told The News that no such sponsor has been roped in since the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting’s zero-tolerance notification against surrogate betting companies.
The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, in a notification issued on September 25, declared Defa News as a surrogate betting company. The spokesperson said that PCB strictly prohibits any form of gambling or related activities. Some news sites may be sponsors but it is always ensured that their certificate of incorporation and shareholders do not have any ownership of alleged gambling concerns.
He further said that there are allegations against these companies which the court has not confirmed. However, PCB will abide by all relevant laws and ethical provisions in seeking sponsors for all future events.
The correspondent showed through WhatsApp to the PCB spokesperson the advertisements of these surrogate betting companies using the pictures of Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan on social media and asked “How PCB is not responsible for this? These companies are clearly using pictures of Rizwan and Babar without their consent”.
These surrogate betting companies entered Pakistan through cricket when advertisements started appearing in Pakistan Cricket around 2021. From PSL 2023, four of the total six PSL franchises have embarked on betting surrogates as their key sponsors and the PCB failed to regulate them. The News recently reported that the government of Pakistan It has started a crackdown against more than 150 surrogate betting companies operating in the country, which are causing billions of dollars in damage to the country’s economy.
Information and Broadcasting Minister Murtaza Solangi revealed in a conversation with The News that all institutions are united with the military establishment in eliminating these betting companies. However, even after more than a month has passed since the notification was issued by the government today, all these betting apps are still running and no action has been taken by the authorities.
