Gambling Values. In many countries, gambling is illegal because it is viewed as immoral. Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE have implemented strict anti-gambling laws because gambling is prohibited. The Sharjah Police have stepped up patrolling in residential neighbourhoods and green spaces to crack down on illegal practices, including gambling, gathering of teenagers under buildings. Most of the United Arab Emirates’ laws are based on passages from the Quran, which explicitly prohibits gambling. As a result, casinos are illegal in the country and all websites facilitating gambling are blocked. It can be quite a surprise for tourists who visit the country to suddenly find that they can’t access online casinos anymore. Despite Dubai believing in becoming a progressive city and embracing change, it’s not willing to do that at the cost of its Islamic culture. As such, gambling – as well as drinking. If you plan to visit Dubai and its many tourist attractions, such as the Burj Khalifa, you will not find any legal casinos, sports betting facilities, or card. United Arab Emirates Almost all Islamic countries prohibit gambling of every kind, but many turn a blind eye to online gambling or simply do not have regulations in place for this grey area. In the United Arab Emirates, however, any kind of gambling is prosecuted and players can serve up to two years in jail under the Penal Code’s Article 414.

Being the biggest city of UAE (United Arab Emirates), Dubai has made a huge name for itself as the top business destination in the entire Middle East. When it comes to gaming, Dubai follows the exactly same rules that are applicable to the rest of the Emirates. Hence, you’ll see almost no gambling happening under the strict Islamic law here. As a result, many interested gamblers turn to online casinos that accept players from UAE on their platforms. Here’s a list of things you should avoid doing when travelling to Dubai.

Religious opposition to gambling

As mentioned earlier, gambling is not legally permitted in Dubai, as is the case with anywhere in UAE. The government and culture of the UAE strictly goes by the Islamic law, considering indulging in games of chance a huge sin. However, that doesn’t mean that Muslims don’t gamble ever. But betting with any real money is clearly disapproved of, and hence there’s a great deal of uniformity regarding such a ban in all the major Islamic nations.

Hence, despite being quite popular among business travellers, you won’t find any casinos in Dubai. Furthermore, you won’t also find any card rooms, legal sports betting options or lotteries in the city. Any form of betting through brick-and-mortar establishments is strictly prohibited.

If you compare Dubai to a county like Canada, where both bricks and mortar, and online casinos are allowed then you will note quite a difference. For example, you can go through these comprehensive online casino reviews to see the top online casinos that operate in Canada. If you are Canadian that is travelling to Dubai, it is worth keeping this in mind that what you do at home may not be ok in Dubai- even if it is gambling online.

Having said that, certain activities bearing close relation to betting are permitted nevertheless. For instance, you can witness plenty of horse races in Dubai. For instance, Meydan Racecourse which has both turf and dirt tracks can be seen hosting a large number of thoroughbreds from all parts of the world as well as the local Arabian horses competing against each other, often for big cash prizes. Dubai World Cup has for long been recognised as the biggest horse race in Dubai where the best horses from the world compete for millions of dollars. Although bettors from different parts of the world can punt on these races from their own respective countries, you can’t do so legally in the UAE.

Although no local online casinos, playing at foreign-based websites might be possible
Keeping in mind the strong ethical stance that UAE has against all forms of gambling, they don’t place equally stricter restrictions on online gambling opportunities provided by foreign-based operators. Not much can be done against the foreign-based online casinos and gambling platforms that accept players from Dubai and other parts of the UAE. Therefore, in practice, you might be able to access foreign-based online gambling platforms from Dubai. In fact, there are cases where players are able to freely play at online casinos with real money, at such offshore websites.

There are a good number of reputed software developers that license out their games to online casinos that accept Dubai players, including Microgaming, Play’n Go, Betsoft, NetEnt and Playtech.

Strong measures have been taken to ensure that no one runs any online gambling website from within the country though.

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Gambling Laws Uae

You shouldn’t gamble in Dubai

There are currently no plans to legalise casino gaming or sports betting in the city, according to recent reports. Despite Dubai believing in becoming a progressive city and embracing change, it’s not willing to do that at the cost of its Islamic culture. As such, gambling – as well as drinking.
If you plan to visit Dubai and its many tourist attractions, such as the Burj Khalifa, you will not find any legal casinos, sports betting facilities, or card rooms. If you do find any, you should always avoid them as they will be illegal and unlicensed, and you could get in to serious trouble.

Horse Racing in Dubai

Dubai is fast growing hub for international horse racing, and has four major venues – the Meydan Racecourse, the Nad Al Sheba Racecourse, the Dubai Camel Race Club, and the Jabel Ali Racecourse.
The biggest event in the sport, the Dubai World Cup, is hosted every year. However, you are not allowed to gamble on any races in the festival whilst in Dubai.
There is some good news for those of you wondering if you can ever place a bet at a Dubai racecourse. You can punt on horses without breaking the law at both the Jebel Ali Racecourse and the Nad Al Sheba Racecourse on selected days, but please always check beforehand.
Placing bets illegally can lead to serious trouble, and turn your dream UAE holiday into a nightmare.

Casino Gaming in Dubai

You will never find any physical casino’s or gaming facilities in the city of Dubai. There are a number of illegal casino’s in suburbs outside of the centre, but you should always steer clear of these. The punishments from the justice system for breaking these laws are severe and law-enforcement will not show any mercy if you are found out. Similarly, you also risk getting mugged and/or robbed in such a facility.

Is Gambling Illegal In Uae

Summary

Can you gamble in Dubai? There are ways you can have a punt, but is it really worth the risk? Stay out of trouble, soak up the sun and enjoy the fusion of Western and Arabic culture that Dubai offers.