The force said it expected an increase in view of its experience from 2022, when the Fifa World Cup was held in Qatar. That year, police arrested 6,781 people, with 607 cases involving serious gambling – the highest figures in half a decade at the time – suggesting that major international sporting events had become a carnival for gamblers and bookies.

“We [therefore] expect that there will be an increase in the number of illegal gambling cases due to the coming Euro tournament,” said acting superintendent Wong Yu-fai of the organised crime and triad bureau, referring to the competition that kicks off in Munich on June 14.

The use of smartphones and online platforms had also enabled easier betting, Wong added at a media event to draw public attention to problem gambling.

A former gambler identified only as “X”, who the force arranged to speak to media, said: “I became addicted to gambling since I was in my twenties. Apart from when I was sleeping, I spent all my time on it.”

X had started gambling as a young man, influenced by colleagues at that time. After getting a taste of winning, he gradually became more engrossed with gambling, especially betting on football, a sport he was familiar with.

X said he had tried to quit gambling more than 20 times over the years but had failed, and the addiction had caused him to go bankrupt with millions owed to creditors.

He added that he was receiving counselling to abstain from gambling.

“I lost my girlfriend and also hurt my family,” he said. “They were forced to shoulder the burden of my debts, which put a lot of pressure on them.”

Another former gambler who went by “Ivan” similarly emphasised that there were only downsides to gambling, saying his addiction had led to a divorce and left a lifelong scar on is daughter.

“My daughter is still angry with me as I did not spend time taking care of her when she was a child,” Ivan said, adding that he was sorry and was trying to lead a new life with a stable job.

Police clinical psychologist Woo Chin-pang said many addicts wanted to earn quick money and fell victim to the “gambler’s fallacy”, an irrational bias that led them to believe that the more times they placed a bet, the higher their chances of winning.

Police said on Thursday that they were conducting “numerous” investigations into ongoing illegal bookmaking activities.

The force recorded 2,322 cases linked to illegal gambling from 2019 to last year. More than 800 people were detained and records detailing over HK$3.6 billion (US$463 million) worth of bets were seized in operations against illegal bookmaking that involved the Euro 2020 tournament during that period.

Another officer from the organised crime and triad bureau, Senior Inspector Wong Chun-hong, revealed that nearly 30,000 people were arrested from 2019 to 2023 for all forms of illegal gambling.