Giant gambling debts left desperate footballer in England considering suicide
Stunning revelations come from a new study which explores the depth of gambling addiction within football
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AN ENGLISH-BASED pro football player considered suicide after racking up enormous gambling debts.
Others have confessed to suffering from severe depression after massive betting binges, including punts on football, and sleeping with prostitutes.
The stunning revelations come from a new study which explores the depth of gambling addiction within football.
Bangor University, in conjunction with its London and Oxford counterparts, interviewed 11 British players who have all experienced gambling problems.
Six are current or ex-Premier League stars and all were undergoing or had undergone treatment at the Sporting Chance Clinic.
According to the study, most of the interviewees reported “severe symptoms of depression and anxiety characterised by mixtures of panic, hopelessness and thoughts of suicide”.
One revealed: “After gambling binges, after sleeping with prostitutes . . . you wake up and the reality of the day is dawning on you.
“You just feel empty and soulless. I was in a really dark hole, sleep deprivation — I just couldn’t function, I couldn’t even make rational decisions in the end.
“I was depressed from gambling, my life had become just totally unmanageable and, over a period of time, I think my body was just shutting down. I also had suicidal thoughts.”
In the report, another footballer explained the emotional crisis he went through after incurring heavy gambling debts.
And he revealed how it is not ‘macho’ to own up to problems.
The player said: “Gambling had beaten me, it had chewed me up, swished me around in its mouth a million times until I was basically numb and dead, and spat me out. That’s where I felt I was. I think it’s the case that most gamblers are too embarrassed, or have too much self-pride, that they don’t want to admit they have a problem.
“Working with footballers, it’s quite a macho, competitive sport, so there’s a lot of egos flying about.
“It kind of bruises your ego a bit as a professional sportsman to admit you’ve lost. I had to admit I’d lost to gambling and in many ways that goes against what I’m about.”
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Researchers found that the favourite methods of betting included video roulette, fixed-odds betting terminals in bookmakers, slot machines, horse racing and even on football.
A worldwide ban on players betting on football came into force in August 2014.
It prevents participants from punting, either directly or indirectly, on any football match or competition in the world.
Elsewhere, the report discovered that players’ gambling tended to become a problem if they were under high levels of pressure.
Several clubs had high-stakes card schools but “nine times out of ten” it was controlled. Yet players who got into trouble with gambling on their own were coping with long-term injuries, had been dropped or even transferred to a club away from family and friends.
One of the report’s authors, Professor Robert Rogers, said: “Our research highlighted several factors which could reduce the risk of footballers becoming addicted to gambling.
“This includes the need for staff and coaches at football clubs to be aware of the influence of peer behaviour, as well as the major influence senior players’ gambling behaviour has on young players.”
Top-level football has been blighted by several high-profile cases of gambling in recent years.
The likes of former England winger Paul Merson, ex-Wales striker John Hartson and former top-flight stars Michael Chopra and Matt Etherington have all spoken about their addictions.
Belgium’s soccer federation has begun an inquiry into claims several players in the country’s top league bet on their own matches.
Waasland Beveren have fired keeper Laurent Henkinet for betting on a match he played in.