SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
EPIC Global Solutions has announced that Dominic Matteo has joined the gambling harm prevention specialist as a lived experience facilitator.
The Premier League and Scotland international defender – known for his top-flight spells with Liverpool, Leeds and Blackburn, as well as being capped six times by his country – will now be educating audiences on the potential dangers associated with betting.
His on-pitch success, however, came with an addiction to gambling preceding him being declared bankrupt.
Matteo – who admitted in his autobiography that he lost more than £1m to gambling – commented: “Having had issues with gambling, it’s something that I’m very, very passionate about, so to receive the call from EPIC was lovely news.
“Everyone at EPIC knows what they want to do in order to prevent gambling-related harm and it’s important that we keep doing that to make it a better place for everyone.
“I will be trying to help as many people as I can who are in a similar position to what I was in. I fell down that trap and I don’t want it to happen to anyone else.”
In his new role, Matteo will engage with top sports professionals across a wide range of partnership agreements held by the company, including likely engagement with EFL and SPFL football clubs, Premiership Rugby teams and elite trainers and owners from British horse racing.
Matteo shared his excitement to be heading back to the training grounds as he “understands what a dressing room is like” and emphasised the importance in getting the word across.
He continued: “As a younger player, there wasn’t really that much information around about gambling, so getting my voice across to help people who think they haven’t got a problem, and preventing it before it does become a problem, is key for me.
“Hopefully my wife Jess will be involved as well, accompanying me to the sessions, so that people get to understand it from her perspective too. When I was gambling, I would tell her that I didn’t have a problem and she would try to tell me that I did, but I wouldn’t listen, because as footballers you can be stubborn and think you can control everything yourself.
“It’s vital that you get support from your family and friends and we’ll be urging people to listen to that.”
During education sessions, Metteo will explain the ‘detrimental effect’ that problem gambling had on him and those closest to him, continuing EPIC’s mission to use lived experience as a method of educating others on the potential outcomes of gambling-related issues in order to mitigate against the problem.
