The first official mention of gambling in Bengal is usually linked to the Public Gambling Act of 1867 – a British law that attempted to control wagering and underground “money games.” The irony is that the British were the ones who brought cricket here. A game that began as a “foreign pastime for the elite” eventually became the language of the streets. Alongside it grew a shadow habit of betting on the outcome: who would take the over, who would hold the wicket, and who would “crumble” under the pressure.
If you look at the timeline, betting in Bangladesh isn’t just about technology; it’s about the environment: how people got the score, how they moved money, and whose word they trusted.
Stage 1: Ledgers and “Trust Betting” (1971 – 1990s)
After Independence in 1971, cricket wasn’t yet the giant it is today. Football ruled the streets, while cricket was for schools, clubs, and enthusiasts. But the habit of wagering on sports doesn’t appear out of nowhere. In the 80s, betting existed in its simplest form: verbal and through middlemen.
How it looked then:
- In markets, near workshops, or at tea stalls, people would agree on a sum and record it in a notebook – sometimes literally just one line.
- Money almost never changed hands immediately; a man’s word and reputation were more important. You could lose more than just your BDT; you could lose your place in the social circle.
- The source of information was everything. Radio and later TV gave news unevenly: some heard the broadcast, some heard from a neighbour, and some caught rumours from “people in the know.” This birthed local legends about “the man who always knows first.” In reality, it wasn’t a miracle; it was just a matter of who heard the score first.
Stage 2: The TV Boom and “Phone Betting” (2000 – 2010s)
In 2000, Bangladesh gained Test Status, and cricket went mainstream. It stopped being a niche sport and became the nation’s collective emotion. During such periods, betting always shifts its shape – it moves toward wherever it’s easiest for people to gather and exchange news.
Two things shifted the habit significantly:
- Satellite TV: Matches were watched collectively – at home, in tea stalls, and in student hostels.
- The Mobile Phone: Bets began to be taken via calls to “connections” who matched players and recorded the stakes.
This was a transition period. Wagers were becoming more common, but settlements were still often in cash. Consequently, conflicts were frequent: people argued over who said what, who meant what, and who “changed their tune” when the result went the wrong way. A major milestone was the 2007 World Cup victory over India – a moment when the excitement moved from the back alleys into office corridors and student nights.
Stage 3: Smartphones and Mobile Wallets (2015–2023)
While betting in the 2000s lived through “middlemen,” by the mid-2010s, it migrated to the screen. This was driven by two things: the smartphone revolution and mobile finance.
With the rise of bKash, and later Nagad and other services, the hardest part of the old system vanished: “where to get cash, how to hand it over, and how to prove it.” Payments became instant. In Bangladesh, a mobile wallet isn’t “new tech”; it’s a daily routine.
The market’s “taste” also changed. Betting shifted from “who wins the match” to more granular events:
- Over-by-over runs,
- Specific sessions of play,
- “Fancy” formats, where you wager on a single episode rather than the final result.
Cricket became a stream: the match is long, but the decisions within it are many. The thrill stopped waiting for the final whistle; it now lives in the silence between balls.
Stage 4: Today – Information Speed and Digital Folklore (2024 – Present)
Today, cricket betting in Bangladesh is no longer a “secret market industry”; it is a phenomenon that lives alongside everyday life. It isn’t always loud or public, but it is certainly there.
The main currency now isn’t just “strategy,” but the speed of information. Some watch on TV, some via streams, others on text-based lives, and many discuss it in private chats. In live formats, seconds truly matter: whoever sees the moment first reacts first. It’s the same old race for the score, just in a new digital skin.
Furthermore, betting has become part of digital folklore. Successful predictions become memes, commentators’ catchphrases end up in Stories, and “that one over” is discussed as if it were a family legend. In this sense, much is recognisable from the old notebook days: people still experience cricket together – only now, the phone is always right next to the emotion.
The Historical Loop: From 1867 to the Modern Screen
In 1867, the colonial administration tried to use bans to fix something that already lived in society: the desire to argue over an outcome, to test one’s fate, and to prove “I told you so.” A century and a half later, the form has changed – from tea stalls and ledgers to apps and wallets. But the human element remains the same.
Cricket arrived here as an imported game. Bangladesh took it and made it its own – along with everything people usually hide right next to a great passion.