Anyone who is even slightly informed about Japan and its culture might be suspicious about the sole existence of gambling in this country. Yet, gambling in Japan had begun long before modern day minimum deposit casinos ( 最低入金額 カジノ) were invented. However, one of the world’s favorite pastimes has gone through a lot of turbulence in the Land of the Rising Sun, and it is still going through some changes today.

It started slow, with a simple board game, and then went from being completely banned to somewhat allowed. These events have only made the story all the more interesting, and the text below will show you how it has unfolded in chronological order.

It All Began With Ban-Sugoroku

Japanese Emperor Tenmu was the one who made the first move towards introducing gambling in the country. During his reign, the Emperor enjoyed playing a game called ban-sugoroku, which was similar to well-known games such cribbage and backgammon. After his death, the throne was taken over by Empress Jito who banned the game completely.

Nevertheless, Japanese people kept playing it, along with many other games, and the fun part included betting on cockfights and horse racing. These activities, which mostly took place in Kyoto, produced professional gamblers known as Bakuto. These gambling enthusiasts were one of the reasons why Japanese officials decided to prohibit gambling.

The laws remained in force until 1718, when gambling classification was put to paper. Japanese authorities legalized light bets, including lotteries and bets under 50 mon. Additionally, during this period, many dice and card games became popular in Japan, one of which was zanmai, a game similar to today’s blackjack.

Pachinko — Japan’s Gaming Obsession

The next in line was pachinko, which arrived in Japan in the 1920s. It was first sent from Chicago, and it was known as Corinthian Bagatelle — a children’s version of bagatelle pinball. At first, this game targeted children who played it for fruits and sweets.

The children named it pachi pachi, which was the onomatopoeia of the sound the game produced when many small balls were thrown into the playing box by a lever. The balls would then land into specific pockets, and the players would win a jackpot or some smaller amounts of money. The goal of the game was to collect as many balls as possible and exchange them for real money prizes.

The game later evolved and became popular among adults as well, but it disappeared during World War II. After the war, pachinko returned and became the main gambling device, similar to today’s slot machines. However, the pachi slots are not exactly a simple game of chance, as it takes some skill and practice to make them work for you.

The game is still popular in Japan, with over 5 million machines spread around thousands of gaming rooms.

Japanese Mahjong

Another game that entered the Japanese gambling market was Mahjong, which was brought from China by a soldier named Saburo Hirayama. Japanese players first got the simplified version of Mahjong, However, later on more rules were added to it.

Mahjong has remained one of Japan’s most popular table games to date. Still, this activity is not exactly accepted as a legal form of gambling.

According to Wikipedia, gambling in Japan is forbidden and usually prohibited by the Criminal Code, Chapter 23. But there are some exclusions that allow wagering on horse running and particular motorsports. Though playing casinos are outlawed, there are Yakuza, who run it.

Are There Casinos in Japan?

A contentious bill to legalize casinos in Japan cleared a key parliamentary panel on Tuesday, paving the way for high-stakes gambling in the world's third-biggest economy. TOKYO - Japanese lawmakers on July 20 enacted controversial legislation legalizing gambling resorts, a move nearly two decades in the making. Since 2001 the Japanese government consistently turned away all efforts to legalize casinos as political leaders argued about the benefits and costs of opening the doors to the establishment of casinos in Japan. This month the Japanese Diet voted to change the laws relating to gambling in Japan.

Legalizing Gambling In Japan

In 2018, Japan finally decided to integrate land-based casino venues into its culture. Still, there are no brick-and-mortar casinos in Japan at the moment. That is why the first casino owners who set their foot in this country will have to build integrated resorts that will have to follow strict government guidelines.

For example, any Japanese citizen who wants to play casino games will have a chance to do so up to three times per week. Also, players won’t be allowed to play casino games more than 10 times per month. On top of that, every Japanese player will have to pay a JPY6,000 fee only to enter a casino.

Several casinos that wanted to settle in Osaka have applied for casino resort licenses, while some have also targeted Tokyo and Yokohama. Unfortunately, the ongoing pandemic and the postponement of the Olympic Games have halted all operations for now.

Legal Gambling in Japan — Public Sports Betting and Lotteries

If public sports betting is your thing, you should know that you can legally participate in it in Japan. The available sports you can bet on include horse racing, bicycle racing, powerboat racing, and asphalt speedway motorcycle racing. Horse racing is by far the most popular betting market, perhaps because more than 20,000 races are held in Japan annually.

Football pools are also available for wagering but only under specific regulations. However, bear in mind that online sports betting is not legal in this country.

Finally, Japanese people can take part in lotteries, primarily in selected number lotteries, unique number lotteries, and scratch-off tickets. A designated cash prize for each of the lotteries can only go up to 50% of the total sales. The rest of the money belongs to the government. Yet, despite this regulation, lottery cash prizes can reach up to 100 million yen.

Conclusion

Japan is a unique country in many ways, and its gambling history is a work of art itself. Namely, gambling in Japan started with a classic board game played in one’s free time. Then, this pastime — and all other forms of gambling, for that matter — was absolutely forbidden for a while.

Over the years, some quite specific games got integrated into Japanese culture. Eventually, the government decided to give the green light to the legalization of land-based casinos. Hopefully, they will say yes to online sports betting soon as well, thus completing the long-awaited gambling package Japanese players have been waiting for.

“General and Online Gambling Laws in Japan”

Japan Legalized Gambling

In the remainder of this article I’ll discuss the many forms of fully legal gambling Japan. If you are also interested in watching a video covering gambling, I’ve included one in English below.

To explain this video quickly: the first terminal shown is our standard numbers lottery. The terminal shown at the 40 second mark sells multiple lotteries and scratch cards. At the 50 second mark you can see boat racing. At about the 1:27 mark you’ll see one of our legal horse racing tracks.

Lottery in Japan

Legalized Gambling In Japan

Lottery had existed here since around 1630 but was banned in 1842. The majority of our current gambling laws stem from 1907 legislation where lottery remained prohibited. In 1937, war concern left our government with an urgent need for funds. In response, they passed the Temporary Funds Adjustment Act (TFAA) of 1937 which created a national lottery. While repealed the following year, the same emergency need for funds followed World War II. This created another national lottery beginning in October 1945.

The legal basis for allowing permanent lotteries came about with two statues. The ability to legalise it is included in the Government Finance Act (Act No. 109 of 1948). The Lottery Voucher Act (Act No. 144 of 1948) did just that – effective 12 July 1948. We abolished the government ran lottery in 1954 putting it in the hands of our local governments. In 1964, we moved to regulate lottery nationally and created the Japan Lottery Association.

Today, authorized lotteries are called takarakuji (宝くじ). These lotteries are the most popular form of legal Japanese gambling. For those speaking our language you can learn all about them at the official takarakuji website. In this article I provide only a brief overview of the most popular national wide lotteries. Other lotteries (not mentioned) are run by banks, charities and by prefectures or major cities.

Nationwide Japanese Lotteries (Takarakuji)

• Year-end Jumbo Lottery – (Nenmatsu Jumbo Takarakuji) – is the largest lottery not only in Japan but in all of Asia. Tickets costing ¥300 are pre-printed so the exact number of winners is known in advanced. Tickets use numbers 0-9 for its 6 numbers and also has a group number (1-68). The drawing is held on New Year’s Eve. For 2012, there were 68 first place winners of 400 million yen who had the exact match 195280-61. The 204 winners of 30 million yen are those who held one before (195279-61), one after (195281-61) and all correct except the bonus (195280-XX). There are smaller prizes for third, fourth, fifth and sixth place.
• Jumbo Lottery – there are 4 other Jumbo lotteries each year that work the same as the one described above. Three have long been held which are Green held in March, Dream held in June, and Summer held in August. One additional Jumbo has been added where the proceeds go to an earthquake relief fund. 2013 scheduling for that added draw is still pending.
• Mini Lotto – released in 1999, Mini Lotto is a weekly game drawn on Tuesdays costing ¥200 per ticket. There are 5 slots that and a bonus slot. For each you must select a number up to 31. If you get all correct and the bonus you win the jackpot which is generally between ¥6 million and ¥14 million. If you get 4 of 5 numbers and the bonus correct you win about ¥150,000. If you do the same without the bonus you win about ¥10,000. Also, 3 of 5 correct pays ¥1000.
• Lot 6 – released in 2000, works similar to Mini Lotto. However, it is drawn twice a week on Monday and Thursday. The cost is ¥200 per wager. The major differences are this uses an extra slot and the numbers range up to 43. That’s six numbers 1-43 and a bonus number. This pays 5 places. The first place jackpot can be up to ¥1 billion with carryover but this is rare. If there are winners on back-to-back weeks the prize may only be ¥60 million. Big jackpots do happen. The December 24, 2012 draw paid ¥374.4 million as there were no winners the previous two draws.
• Numbers 3 – this, along with Numbers 4, is the standard daily numbers game in Japan. You pick three numbers (1-9) at a cost of ¥200 per wager. The prizes vary a lot. All three in exact order is often around ¥80,000, the box (any order) ranges ¥12,000 to ¥30,000 for most draws. There are also prizes for first two, first two any order, and mini which is last two in exact order.
• Numbers 4 – All details regarding this lottery are the exact same as the above except it is played with 4 numbers not 3. The prizes paid are all four exact order (straight), all four any (box), first three exact (set-straight) and first three any (set-box). The prizes vary a lot. In January 2013 first ranged from ¥723,000 to ¥1.3 million.
• Scratch Cards – scratch cards, also called instant lotto have been offered in Japan since 1984. They can be purchased at nationwide lottery stands. Most versions including Premium Scratch, Mrs. Happy Link, Puzzles Scratch and Scratch Lottery cost ¥200 per ticket. There are ¥100 tickets such as Lucky 3. Playing involves simply scratching the card and then looking at the instructions on it to see if you’ve won.

The takarakuji lotteries are strictly considered an amusement by Japanese law. This means there are no age limits or taxes owed on winnings. Even children can purchase tickets. Also by law, you must be a bona fide resident of Japan to collect a prize. Tickets are not sold abroad.

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