- Video
-
Club Roar
Captured a great grassroots sporting moment? We want to see it!Content Collections
The Roar Community
- Join
- Login
When the AFL is the missing link between ex-Hawthorn player Brent Guerra and gambling agency CrownBet, more than a few eyebrows should be raised.
Up until this week, the link may have seemed innocent, innocuous or nondescript.
But that was before Guerra confessed to a four-year gambling addiction that cost him an alarming $400,000, which began while he was playing at the Hawks.
Guerra’s battle with gambling is not an isolated episode in the world of football, however, leading many to label gambling as the scourge of the AFL.
But how did we end up here? And why isn’t the AFL more accountable, particularly when one of their official partners, CrownBet, is a gambling agency?
Of course, where gambling is concerned, the water is often muddied. And when it comes to the relationship between sport and betting, the mud is thick.
The AFL has strong internal sanctions regarding gambling.
Indeed, Collingwood’s Jack Crisp was sanctioned $5000 as punishment for the four AFL bets he made while a listed Brisbane Lions player in March.
And an AFL score review official was found to have permitted another person to use his betting account to place 62 bets on AFL matches, leading to his permanent suspension for the 2015 season.
It seems that when it comes to keeping football clean, the AFL are more than happy to take a punitive stance.
But can the AFL really stand behind their tough internal policies when the names of betting companies are a constant iconography in the football landscape?
Come game day, whether you’re watching football from the couch or the ground, each intermission is filled by reminders to bet: on the first goal, the winning margin or a multi-bet, which is predicated on the outcome of more than one game.
And you don’t even have to leave your seat to complete the bet.
With the advent of smartphones and apps, online betting is now just a few clicks away – so, too, is the gambler’s ability to link up credit cards to the app.
Technically, then, you could be watching Carlton take on Essendon at the MCG while betting on Fremantle’s winning margin against the Swans at Domain Stadium.
Heck, why stop there! You could even dabble in horse racing, the greyhounds or the name of the next royal baby.
Guerra’s own experience is a testament to the consuming world of addiction. He said he’d bet on any sport at any time of day, as long as his partner wasn’t around.
Indeed, the amount of down time AFL players have may be one of the reasons gambling has become so ingrained in the betting culture at many clubs.
Going to the TAB or having a punt on your phone at home fills a spare half hour and, if you’re earning as much money as Guerra was, a couple of hundred dollars is not much to lose.
That’s because the average salary of an AFL player is around $250,000 – almost five times the average salary in Australia.
For young men, that’s a lot of money to be playing around with and, while draftees are on much less than that average figure, they still earn more than the average Australian.
In 2015, first round draft picks were paid $71,515, second round draft picks were paid $65,000 and third round draft picks or lower were paid $61,610.
That’s infinitely more money than most 18 year olds would receive.
And, in the unique AFL ecosystem, where clubs provide more to players than just a salary, the majority of that money is somewhat disposable.
Does this leave the possibility for young footballers to be tempted into betting their wage far too open?
To say the AFL is complicit in the downfall of footballers, such as Brent Guerra, may be a stretch too far.
But Gillon McLachlan and the AFL can certainly do more to ensure there are appropriate measures in place to prevent players becoming addicted to gambling.
Scrapping the live-betting ads at games and throughout the broadcast of games would be a good place to start.
Who’s in your ultimate team? Pick the best team and compete with other fans for daily prizes on Draftstars. For the best odds on the game try out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Think. Is this a bet you really want to place? Set a deposit limit.