Cher Jimenez
Players from various disadvantaged backgrounds played friendly footy on Wednesday to promote the Love the Game campaign to increase awareness of gambling associated with sports betting.
A total of 10 players from Reclink Australia and staff from Latrobe Community Health Service battled it out at the Morwell Recreation Reserve to boost the campaign organised by the Victorian Responsible Gambling Foundation in 2016.
Gippsland Gambler’s Help community educator Lauren Sewell said Love the Game was meant to counteract gambling advertising associated with various sports.
“It’s all about the message of loving the game and not the odds … rather than actually worrying [about] sports for the odds it’s more about supporting and encouraging sport for the fact that it’s social, it’s fun, and good for your wellbeing,” Ms Sewell said.
She said while gambling was strongly embedded in the Australian culture, creating an environment that was free from gambling advertising and activities within local sporting clubs could refocus people’s attention on the game itself and not on the odds involved.
“If we could reduce harm from gambling by reducing that exposure in our local sporting clubs I guess it’s helping in some way,” she said.
Ms Sewell said between eight and 10 local sporting clubs had signed up for the Love the Game campaign where players were educated on the harm associated with gambling.
She said gambling was a huge issue in the Valley with the Victorian Responsible Gaming Foundation estimating that in Latrobe a total of $119,000 was being spent on pokies alone on a daily basis.
“That doesn’t include sports betting or TAB or other kinds of gambling that are available so there’s a lot of money being spent,” she said.
Reclink Australia sports coordinator Stacey Whitelaw said the foundation was happy to partner with the Victorian Responsible Gaming Foundation to promote the program.
“Gambling is fast becoming a normal part of sport and the Love the Game program aims to counter the normalisation of gambling in sport and create safe and healthy sporting clubs,” she said.
Ms Whitelaw said the campaign was specifically relevant to Reclink as they work with disadvantaged people who, aside from gambling, may also be facing other issues such as substance abuse, unemployment, and disability.
