Professional adult athletes in Europe are more likely to gamble and are at an increased risk of problem gambling compared to non-athletes. This is potentially due to significant social and financial interrelations between sports and gambling. However, there is less known about gambling among younger athletes in Europe. It is especially important to address gambling within this age group because gambling at a young age is associated with an elevated risk of problem gambling and poorer mental health outcomes. This week, The WAGER reviews a study by Maria Vinberg and colleagues that examined the prevalence of problem gambling among young athletes at different skill levels in Sweden.
What were the research questions?
(1) Does the prevalence of problem gambling differ between male and female athletes who compete at different skill levels of their sports in Sweden?, and (2) Among young athletes, how do risky drinking and social acceptance of gambling relate to problem gambling?
What did the researchers do?
The authors recruited 1,636 athletes from the National Sports Education Program (“NIU” in Swedish) and 816 grassroots athletes, all aged 16 – 20 years old, to participate in this study. NIU athletes practice sports in connection with school and compete at an elite level, while grassroots athletes practice sports outside of school and compete at a non-elite level. To measure problem gambling and risky alcohol consumption, participants completed the Problem Gambling Severity Index and the AUDIT-C, respectively. The researchers also created a questionnaire to measure how accepting participants’ friends and family members were about gambling (e.g., “Gambling is important to my family”, “My classmates talk about gambling”).
What did they find?
The prevalence of problem gambling was higher among males compared to females for both groups of athletes (see Figure). The prevalence was also higher among male NIU athletes (5.5%) compared to male grassroots athletes (2.5%). While problem gambling among female athletes was very low, female NIU athletes were more likely to gamble in a non-problematic way than female grassroots athletes (26.1% vs. 18.5%).
Additionally, risky alcohol consumption was associated with problem gambling among both groups, especially among NIU athletes. Among NIU athletes, those who reported risky drinking had more than twice the odds of problem gambling than those who did not report risky drinking. Problem gambling was also associated with several aspects of gambling acceptance, including having classmates who talked about gambling and having family/friends who viewed gambling as important.
Figure. Prevalence of gambling and problem gambling among male and female NIU (i.e., elite) and grassroots (i.e., non-elite) athletes. Click image to enlarge.
Why do these findings matter?
Gambling is prevalent among young athletes in Sweden, particularly among elite male athletes. This study suggests that they are especially vulnerable to developing problem gambling if they have family, teammates, or coaches with positive attitudes towards gambling. Thus, it is important to educate young athletes about the risks of gambling and to create targeted resources that address various contextual factors (e.g., school and team environments) that affect them. The NCAA’s sports wagering e-learning module and substance misuse prevention program are two examples of this type of education program.
Every study has limitations. What are the limitations in this study?
This study was conducted in Sweden and only included athletes from a few selected sports (including ice hockey, football, floorball, golf, and cross-country skiing), so the results might not be generalizable to other countries with different gambling attitudes or to athletes from different sports. Additionally, the researchers only used self-report measures, so the responses might be impacted by social desirability bias.
The Minnesota Conference on Problem Gambling takes place on Thursday, Sept. 19 at the Hilton Minneapolis/Bloomington. While we’re still finalizing the day’s sessions, here are some topics we plan to cover:
The intersection of gambling and suicide
Financial counseling for families
The impact of gambling on families
Community leader panel discussion about gambling
Update on sports betting legislation
National gambling attitudes survey results
Please check mnapg.org in the coming months for additional information about the conference as we solidify the agenda.
National Conference
The National Conference on Gambling Addiction & Responsible Gambling takes place in San Diego on July 17-19. The conference brings together world-class presenters to deliver powerful and insightful messages about problem gambling and responsible gambling. For more information and to register, visit ncpgconference.org.
In today’s digital age, the allure of online gaming and gambling platforms can be enticing, often leading to harmful consequences for our youth. To help build awareness of these risks, MNAPG has created a toolkit specially designed to help schools raise awareness to students. The dynamic, easy-to-use toolkit helps schools communicate gambling and gaming information in a way that promotes safety and understanding.
The kit is free and includes materials for staff and parents (brochures and handouts, video links, PA announcements and content for parents) and materials for students (handouts, posters, bookmarks, and social media images and content).
Support is provided to participants at no cost, and includes MNAPG staff support and in-person speaker presentations. The kits benefit students, teachers, school counselors, coaches, PTA members and parents. If you’re interested in learning more about the toolkit, please contact Sonja Mertz at smertz@mnapg.org or visit https://school-toolkit.mnapg.org.
The term “community engagement” is something you hear often. But what exactly is it and how can it be applied to problem gambling prevention and treatment?
Northern Light sat down with Adina Black, MNAPG program manager, to better understand community engagement in the context of problem gambling.
NL: How would you define “community engagement?”
AB: Community engagement is about utilizing peoples’ lived experiences to understand the needs and priorities of a community, and to use that knowledge to inform what kind of efforts need to take place. For example, when you think about a business selling a product to a target audience, they have to develop it so it speaks to the audience directly — to make sure it’s what they want and that they’re invested in it. It’s the same with solving community health issues. You want to make sure that whatever solutions, programs and initiatives you’re developing, that the direct audience is going to benefit and partake. I like to use an analogy that illustrates this aspect of community engagement. Suppose someone came to you out of the blue with soup and said, “Take this, it will make you feel better.” You’d be hesitant because you haven’t been told what’s ailing you, if you’ll even like it or have an allergy to it. You’d be asked to take something without the soup giver knowing about your needs or how to address them.
NL: How do you apply this to problem gambling?
AB: If look at problem gambling, you want to include those impacted by the problem. Either people with gambling disorders, those who treat them, or family and friends impacted by people with gambling problems. You want them to be involved and informed to address the problem. Nobody can speak to the problem better than those who have lived experience.
Then you also want to determine the issues that are most impactful and harmful and what resources we can create to meet those needs. For example, is it to create a clinic? And if so, will people feel comfortable going to those services?
NL: Do you feel we’re at a critical point in orchestrating community engagement with problem gambling?
AB: Definitely. We’re at an interesting point in Minnesota right now with so much gambling legislation pending. It feels as though we’re watching a gambling addiction epidemic taking place. We’re at a point where we can really do something. Now is the time to build relationships with the various community organizations that can impact the range of social factors that contribute to problem gambling. They will be integral to preventing and treating the issue as it grows. As the opportunity to gamble expands, we will also notice an increase in those who deal with issues around gambling. It’s important to work collaboratively to get ahead of the storm. What can we put in place for prevention, education and bringing awareness? Are we making sure that people in a position to potential diagnose a gambling problem are screening for the disorder? And for those in the throes of gambling addiction, how can we give them access to treatment?
NL: What can you tell us about current community engagement efforts?
AB: Currently, our work is focused on communities most at risk, such as communities of color, certain ethnic groups and groups catering to young men. These are the groups that are, statistically, most at risk to develop problems with gambling. I’m connecting with several groups that represent and provide services to those communities.
NL: Are there other areas you plan to pursue in the future?
AB: Yes. We plan to connect with groups in religious communities as well as in the corrections arena to help identify more people who are vulnerable or who may be experiencing gambling disorder. We’re also open to hearing feedback from community organizations that we haven’t connected with yet. We’d love to explore new collaborations we can undertake together, better serve the community and ultimately help produce better outcomes for all Minnesotans.
My name is Austin Strom, and I am a gambling addict. I am 24, and for the last seven years, gambling has been my life.
Gambling runs in my family. My parents and grandparents, who had their own gambling battles, would often gamble. I have numerous memories of them arranging a baby sitter to watch me when they would go out gambling.
So not surprisingly, when I had an assignment called “If I had 100 dollars!” in kindergarten or first grade, my response was “I would go to the casino!”
In high school, I would occasionally partake in friendly sports wagers involving my team against my friends’ teams. I would also play Blackjack with friends without betting money, but the objective never changed: win the game.
The day I turned 18 was long anticipated. I went to the casino with my parents and grandmother that day. I didn’t have the best luck, but since it was my birthday and my parents didn’t want me to lose on my birthday, they kept adding money in hopes of turning the tide. I don’t remember how that day played out, but I do remember spending about 12 hours at the casino, losing all I had with me. For the next month, I went to the casino multiple times, including a two-night stay by myself at the hotel. Other than a few hours of sleeping, the rest of the time was spent at the Blackjack tables. I remember one day all I had to eat was a piece of pizza because to me eating was time away from the table.
I was then introduced to websites such as DraftKings and Bovada, where I could partake in daily fantasy sports. Before switching to actual sports betting, I lost several thousand dollars on fantasy sports. I would spend the next two years betting on sports weekly, if not daily. I would wait until the day I got paid, just to eventually drain my account and wait two weeks for the next paycheck. By this time, all of my gambling, which also included blackjack, was done online and I rarely went back to a casino.
Once Covid hit and the accompanying shutdowns, I had no shortage of free time. By this time, my minimum bet was already at least ten times more than when I started. When I ran out of money, I learned about online personal loans. I took out a $1,500 loan and planned to make enough money to pay it off before my next paycheck. But that didn’t work out and I borrowed more and more, eventually owing up to $30,000 over a three-week period.
By this time, I was determined to keep the addiction to myself so that nobody would try to encourage me to stop. This pressure, combined with anxiety and depression I had struggled with for much of my life, brought me to consider suicide. This led to one of a few trips to the emergency room for personal safety.
At this time, I was ready to get the help that those around me had suggested, or so I thought. I enrolled in Gamblers Choice, essentially a 12-step program for gamblers. But my addiction continued, even while it was harder to hide. I came to realize that the program wasn’t something I wanted to do or what I was ready for at the time.
I continued to gamble, but eventually went to inpatient treatment at Project Turnabout in Granite Falls. I met great people who understood what I was going through. It also showed me that this addiction doesn’t care where you come from or what you do. My mindset improved but I left after three weeks, rather than stay for the full 30 days I was supposed to do. I re-enrolled in Gamblers Choice but would continue to gamble until Oct. 9, the day I placed my last wager. At this point, I had lost everything I could possibly lose, including my best friend. I was left with two choices — end it all or give it 60 days without gambling and see if living without gambling was something I could do.
I was assigned a “Goodbye Gambling” letter in my Gamblers Choice group, and I believe that really got me to a new place. Since then, I’ve really looked at everything after that as a new life. I’ve had to and am still currently rewiring my brain’s definition of fun. Sure, the highs aren’t as high as they were when I was gambling, and they may never be that way. However, that also means the lows aren’t as low as they were while I was gambling, and that’s a trade I will take every day of the week. My entire outlook on life has changed since I’ve quit gambling. I’ve got a new hope towards life and what’s to come that excites me. I’m definitely a different person than I was even just several months ago. My gratitude for everything life has to offer has grown substantially, and none of that would have happened had I still been gambling. That’s why it’s important that I just don’t gamble today.
If you or somebody you know is struggling with a gambling addiction, please reach out for help. Do it for yourself. So often we see this message and just let it slide by without giving it any thought.
As dark as it may seem, I promise there is light at the end of the tunnel. Let the journey of recovery be that light for you, like it was mine and so many others. I leave you with this: “Sometimes when you’re in a dark place it feels like you’ve been buried alive. But perhaps, you’ve just been planted and now is your time to bloom.”
