Anti-Gambling Addiction-Training for Minors in Great Britain

In Great Britain a youth protection organisation wants to create awareness about the dangers of gambling. Through a “tailor made anti-gambling-Training” the organisation will address minors to make them aware about this issue, because meanwhile due to the overpowering TV-commercials,online gambling is part of the people’s daily routine.

Therefore it definitely makes sense to explain about this illness, especially to young people and sports enthusiasts. Because not only those who lose control about their gambling behaviour at the slot machines are gambling addicts. No, even sports betting can make you addictive. In this article we want to find out how gambling addiction can be explained to young people through sport organisations.

Anti-Gambling-Training in cooperation with sport organisations

The new initiative of the youth protection organisation which explains about gambling ”Young Gamers and Gamblers Education Trust (YGAM)” wants to work closely with local sports organisations, to create awareness among young sport fans. The idea is to be able to offer a “tailor made anti-gambling-training” , which will be offered in conjunction with the sports foundation of the county of Yorkshire (YSF) and the non-profitable sport organisation StreetGames.

Parallel to the sports, which the youths are already training, they will have a specially designed training to make them aware about the dangers of gambling addiction. They will learn for example, how to recognise a gambling addiction in the early stages and what support measures are available for the different age groups. The StreetGames-employee Halima Khan sums up the aims of the project as follows:

The fact, that the youth protection organisation is specifically addressing youths and young men about the gambling issue has a simple background. Scientific studies show that in spite of a legal ban, minors are already gambling. A SCHULBUS survey in 2018 showed that, one in every ten 14 to 17 year olds are gambling regularly.

The British youth protection organisation has acknowledged this potential danger and wants to take preventive measures, to be able to protect young people from this danger. It is not about encouraging the youths to never gamble. As long as they are of legal age, i.e. 18 years, there is no reason why they should not gamble in a responsible way. Both the youth protection organisation YGAM, as well as both sports organisations agree, that prevention from a young age is of utmost importance.

The Federal Centre of Health Education concluded that problematic gambling behaviour often appears in connection with the following factors:

• young aged gamblers
• migrants background
• low monthly income
• regular gambling and bidding of more than 100 Euro

Symptoms of gambling addiction

Meanwhile pathological gambling is an independent psychiatric symptom. There are different clues, which show that a gambler has an addiction. With pathological gamers it is often the case that the bids are always getting higher or they are spending more money on gambling than originally planned. Moreover the concerned gamblers are often preoccupied and constantly think about gambling and cannot stop thinking about it. Besides social contacts and the own relationship are neglected. Further to this, it is often not uncommon that addicted people borrow money or become criminals to be able to continue gambling.

Conclusion

It is definitely a good idea, to protect young people especially from the dangers of gambling addiction. It is often the case that pathological gamblers do not only lose their whole wealth, but also all their social contacts and their relationship. Against this background is the sports ground, where mostly young men meet up, and this is the ideal place to practise prevention effectively. With the acquired knowledge, the sports enthusiastic youths are then optimally prepared to become adults and they know how they can gamble responsibly. Of course the engagement of the youth protection organisation does not absolve the gambling provider from their duty of preventing gambling addiction.

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