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Read Full BioThe Lotte Giants, a leading South Korean baseball team, sent four of its players home from an overseas training camp after finding they had visited an illegal gambling den.
The Giants were in Taiwan for pre-season training at a sports camp. Lotte confirmed the players’ involvement in illegal betting-related activities “through player interviews and fact-checking efforts,” the South Korean newspaper Chosun Ilbo reported.
The players were the experienced duo of Na Seung-yeop and Ko Seung-min, the backup center fielder Kim Dong-hyok, and the rookie shortstop Kim Se-min.
Lotte said it had reported the incident to the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO)’s ethics board, the Clean Baseball Center. The team said it would impose further disciplinary action based on the board’s recommendations.
The quartet was sent back to South Korea on February 14. Lotte said it has suspended them from domestic team training and placed them on probation.
South Korean Baseball: Gambling Furor
Fans expressed dismay when CCTV footage apparently showing the players gambling using computer terminals spread on online communities, the South Korean media outlet News1 reported.
The footage appears to show the incident occurred on February 12, a rest day for all attending the training camp.
Some fans alleged the footage showed one of the players sexually harassing a female employee at the gambling den. News1 reported that this individual, unnamed in media reports, has denied the accusations.
Gambling is illegal in Taiwan. However, the players told Lotte officials they “did not know that the venue they visited was an illegal gambling den.”
“The team is taking this matter very seriously,” a Lotte spokesperson told reporters. “We will deal very strictly with any additional issues that arise during the [KBO’s] investigation. We have also issued a warning to the entire team.”
According to KBO regulations, players found guilty of gambling can be suspended for at least a month or a maximum of 30 games. The center can also fine them a minimum of 3 million won, or around $2,100.
Japanese Baseball Controversy
The South Korean scandal comes hot on the heels of gambling-related controversies that divided pro baseball fans in nearby Japan last year.
Several high-profile players escaped punishment after admitting to using their mobile phones to bet on overseas-based online casinos.
Prosecutors granted most of the players anonymity in exchange for their voluntary reporting of misdeeds to police.
However, this was not the case for the first player found gambling online. The Orix Buffaloes pitcher Taisuke Yamaoka was suspended and named in the media after joining an online poker tournament. The incident has since soured his relationship with the team.
Critics say the Nippon Professional Baseball Organization (NPB) and the Buffaloes unfairly singled Yamaoka out.
The NPB, Japan’s pro baseball league, says it will eliminate online gambling. The NPB says it has launched an education program for players and officials. Accessing online casinos is a criminal offence in Japan.
Japanese pro baseball teams say they are taking proactive steps to ensure all their players are aware that online gambling is illegal.
“When we renew contracts, we issue written and verbal warnings to all players about what to be careful of during the off-season,” an Orix Buffaloes spokesperson said at the end of 2025.
The KBO season will begin on March 28. The NPB season starts one day prior.
