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Opinion
As Round 1 approaches, on comes the onslaught of gambling advertising. From radio, television and newspapers, through to stadium fencing and the league’s very own website, it is inescapable.
The new season will see list changes, rule adjustments and stadium capacity limits increased, however gambling remains the ever-present issue that continues to plague the league in 2022.
This is by no means a new issue. Western Bulldogs player Easton Wood brought the issue back to the forefront at the start of the 2017 season, after attending an AFL education session on a range of topics, including gambling.
Tweeting his concerns, he asked, “Why – as an industry – do we support the onslaught of gambling advertising you’re now faced with when watching an AFL game? The big question is do we think the normalisation of gambling – particularly to kids – is acceptable in this day and age?”
Five years on, little has changed from the AFL’s governing body as the AFL Commission seemingly turn a blind eye. In fact in 2020, the league extended its partnership with betting agency BetEasy, in a deal said to be worth $50 million over five years.
Since then, the corporate bookmaker has merged with Sportsbet to monopolise a further share of the market and become the league’s ‘official wagering partner’.
Interestingly the Brisbane Lions, Gold Coast Suns, Fremantle, West Coast Eagles and GWS Giants all have sponsorship affiliations with gambling agencies. The Lions even went so far as to have Neds’ logo on the back of their guernsey and on the front of the away and clash jumpers for both the 2020 and 2021 seasons.
(Photo by Jono Searle/AFL Photos/via Getty Images)
AFL CEO Gillon McLachlan is on record telling Triple M, “There are some people who have issues with us being involved in wagering. The answer to that is clear: it is a legal thing that is happening all around us.”
But what McLachlan fails to address is the ramifications such affiliations have on AFL brand, the players and society.
2021 data from the Queensland Government Statistician’s Office suggests that “Australians lose approximately $25 billion on legal forms of gambling every year, representing the largest per capita losses in the world.”
A 2017 study from Belinda C. Goodwin and academics at the School of Human, Health, and Social Sciences at Central Queensland University found that, “A problem gambler typically affects the lives of six close family members and friends.”
And then there are the consequences that come from the normalisation of gambling, including addiction, harassment and the indoctrination of young people.
In 2020, Western Bulldogs forward Josh Bruce took to Twitter, sharing he receives “30-plus minimum abusive messages a week, mainly around gambling.”
Richmond’s Dylan Grimes reported death threats and Brisbane Lions’ Mitch Robinson said he is regularly on the end of online harassment.
When then-Collingwood player Jayden Stephenson was suspended in 2019 for betting on a game, coach Nathan Buckley added his voice to the conversation.
In an interview with radio station SEN, Buckley said, “There is a bit of an irony in penalising someone for gambling but then receiving money for it.”
Questioning the league’s priorities, he added, “I can understand the realities of commercialism and needing that support, but sometimes what’s actually good for you short term is not the right moral decision.”
The fans tend to agree, particularly around commercialisation and the abundance of gambling advertising. A 2020 La Trobe University survey of 17,000 sports fans across Victoria found that over 90 per cent of people agree that people aged 12–17 years see too much sports betting advertising.
Action is taking place and there are ripples of change coming from within.
Victorian clubs have partnered with anti-gambling association the Victorian Responsible Gambling Foundation and the Sydney Swans with the NSW Government’s Reclaim the Game initiative. GMHBA Stadium in Geelong has no gambling sponsorships and several clubs, including Melbourne, have sold assets, such as gaming hotel investments.
North Melbourne continue to be leaders in this space and prove it can be done. Last year they announced their tenth consecutive annual profit and celebrated being debt-free for the first time in 34 years.
In an interview with the Herald Sun on the club divesting from the poker machine industry, North Melbourne CEO Carl Dilena said: “If we’re going to make a difference to people’s lives, it’s not compatible to be in pokies where we’re gaining from other people’s losses.”
While gambling will never go away, the proliferation of advertising around it can, particularly nearby young people.
Change must start with a top-down approach and that begins at AFL House. Taking cue from North Melbourne, the AFL can begin by divesting in gambling sponsorships and related advertising revenue for the betterment of the game and all involved.
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