Betting on bots: How resellers are beating others to book badminton courts

A man who appeared to be reselling badminton slots to badminton players outside the Sports Hub's OCBC Arena. ST PHOTO: ARIFFIN JAMAR
New: Gift this subscriber-only story to your friends and family

SINGAPORE - Online marketplaces such as Carousell are the go-to platforms for many Singaporeans to buy anything from beauty products to electronic gadgets. And now, they are also a virtual shop space to purchase bookings at public sports facilities such as badminton courts.

The issue of third parties reselling badminton court bookings was first reported by The Straits Times on Jan 24. Social players had voiced their anger and frustration at being unable to book the courts at ActiveSG's sports halls and the OCBC Arena at the Singapore Sports Hub, only to see the slots being resold for a profit on various platforms such as Carousell, Meetup, Facebook and Telegram.

Already a subscriber? 

Read the full story and more at $9.90/month

Get exclusive reports and insights with more than 500 subscriber-only articles every month

Unlock these benefits

  • All subscriber-only content on ST app and straitstimes.com

  • Easy access any time via ST app on 1 mobile device

  • E-paper with 2-week archive so you won't miss out on content that matters to you

Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.