Asian Volleyball Confederation President Tats Suzara has pushed back against concerns raised by Senator Erwin Tulfo regarding the presence of online betting firm 1XBET in broadcasts of the 2025 FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship, assuring that the company has no direct role in the country’s hosting of the tournament.
With the government intensifying its crackdown on online gambling platforms, Suzara firmly stressed that 1XBET does not have a license to operate here in the Philippines and that its branding has not appeared on local television or inside the competition venues.
“I’d like to clarify because you know, the technology now sa broadcasts sa sports, nag-iiba na. There are a lot of broadcast virtual ads. Even in Wimbledon and the NBA, nakikita na; you thought it was on the ground, pero wala naman pala. In the case of 1XBET, 1XBET is illegal in the Philippines. So it’s not shown on domestic television. Even in One Sports, or Cignal TV, walang 1XBET,” Suzara explained.
The PNVF chieftain noted that any instance of the betting company’s logos appearing comes solely from Volleyball World’s international broadcast feed, which caters to subscribers outside the Philippines.
“You can only see 1XBET in the global feed or if you are a subscriber to Volleyball World. You will see that, even sa local television. This is to clear, we have to correct na baka mali ang information nakuha ni Senator Tulfo, kasi wala e, walang 1XBET dito (referring to the decals) because it’s illegal. It is expected in each country that if illegal, hindi ipapakita ‘yan kasi illegal.”
Suzara also underscored that Volleyball World, as the global rights holder, abides by the legal frameworks of every host nation.
“So domestically, One Sports did not show 1XBET. You can only see that if you’re a subscriber of the global feed or Volleyball World. So, nakikita ko sa pictures na pinadala sa akin, na natanggap ko, it’s from a Volleyball World subscriber na nakita siguro ng… I don’t know kung napanood ni Senator Tulfo or hindi. I’m not so sure. Pero the one that I received na information, ang nakita ng nagbigay ng information, subscriber sa Volleyball World,” he shared.
Throughout his clarification, Suzara reiterated that the Philippines’ hosting of the World Championship remains fully compliant with local laws, with organizers taking extra care to avoid any violations.
“Sinabi ko nga kanina, ito One Sports, so this is domestic television, so walang 1XBET. Pero dun sa pinadala ni, nakuha kong information, ‘yan, may 1XBET, ito ay subscriber ng Volleyball World. I don’t know kung sino’ng nag-subscribe, nakuha niya siguro ‘to, sinabi na naka-subscribe ‘yan.
“Tingnan niyo sa court kung may 1XBET diyan, I think you better take a photo kung may 1XBET diyan, di ba? Wala sa actual … 1XBET is illegal here. Wala sa court. Sa virtual, pero ‘pag subscribed sa global feed. Wala sa One Sports. This is just a clarification, we are doing the right thing here,” Suzara said.
#WATCH: AVC & PNVF President Tats Suzara addresses #MWCH2025 — praises the crowd, explains ticket pricing, notes QF/Finals tickets are selling, and comments on the FIVB’s betting partner 🇵🇭🏐
📹 @justinvalencia_ /Tiebreaker Times pic.twitter.com/PUCDcc33RS
— Tiebreaker Times (@tiebreakertimes) September 16, 2025
