I have a problem with the betting in this early stage that DotA goes through right now. I like the "tango" bets at GosuGamers.net - they make the community talk about the matches and as we all know any publicity is good publicity it only pushes the spreading of DotA in its own kind.

Until now, it was common to use a virtual currency you cannot trade into real money. Everyone can bet in those systems because there is no law to protect [PREVENT??] you from betting in a non-profit thing.

But with the option to place real money on results things change.

I see young people who need money to make their drivers license or just to go out on a Saturday.
And here we are at the point where placing bets can harm the evolution of DotA. There is no possibility to control what the players behind their screens are doing and especially what's in their brains.

In real sports, betting systems have proven to work - there might be negative examples like the German referee Robert Hoyzer - but I think you can never exclude the chance that somebody is cheating to benefit from knowing what others don't.

I like sporting bets because I have no influence on the results. And that's exactly what I think that is missing in betting on the DotA scene. The players are young and in need of much more than just the fast forgotten fame of winning a tournament. Nobody will become the next 'Fatal1ty' by playing DotA, that's more than sure, I think. I think that some people will try to manipulate the system for their own benefit.

There are tons of laws to punish match-fixers in real sports, but how can you punish a 16-year-old that uses an adult to bet his or her money? And how can you prove relations, maybe from Russia over Germany to Thailand or wherever else? DotA has got a global community, and most of the players are still underage. I think it will be hard to bust the black sheep.

Real sport has got real contracts and players know that their futures depend on their behaviour every day.

Robert Hoyzer took a nice TV, a mid class car and some money as a bribe - but now he is marked for his whole life and even got arrested. He has to pay back plenty of money and he's completely out of business. There is no way for him to ever be a football referee again.

Looking at esports, I see 99% players who play DotA because it's fun and a nice waste of time. A hobby for most of us, and even for many professionals. But the key is that they can actually win much more money with manipulated bets than by with winning tournaments.

They won't care about punishments they can get because they will not be harmed. If they get busted and are not allowed to bet in further games, there is simply nothing they lose.

My personal conclusion is that the betting system should only work with LAN events, or maybe they should allow bets only on games with players playing in public areas like e.g. LAN centers.

Most of the Asian teams have got to play from one of these spots, so it would be no problem to bet on them. The real big events with high publicity are the right place to start with bets, not the everyday leagues and tournaments.

But placing real money on teenagers who sit behind a screen, that I will never ever face, is a total no go. Even if they don't want to manipulate, we all know there are a lot of mums out there who like interrupting the connection so their kids have to listen to what they say.

Nobody's fault, and nobody's problem - as long as there is no real cash involved.

So please think about this when you place your pocket money or your income. There are too many factors in betting systems for DotA right now.