BEIJING: Tournament poker is coming to China — a country that still strictly outlaws all forms of gambling.
World Poker Tour Enterprises Inc. said it would sign an agreement on today with the China Leisure Sports Administrative Center. The partnership will "promote the sport of poker, by helping to create, expand and commercialize China's first ever national poker competition," World Poker Tour Enterprises said in a statement.
It said the partnership agreement would run for five years, with an option to extend. Additional details weren't given and it wasn't clear what stakes participants would play for. This deal will not be focused on the island gambling mecca of Macau but rather on mainland China, which represents a different challenge because the Communist government forbids gambling, categorizing it as a form of criminal, anti-social behavior along the lines of prostitution and drug use.
