SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
There has been an increase in people self-excluding from online gambling, a report by GAMSTOP has shown.
The national self-exclusion scheme revealed that new registrations between 2022 and 2023 have grown by 9.5% year-on-year.
In fact, 2023 was a record year for self-exclusions, with more than 92,000 vulnerable consumers registering with GAMSTOP. May in that year also proved to be a record month, with 8,591 new signees.
Closing in on its sixth year anniversary, GAMSTOP was first established in April 2018, and has since helped a total of 433,357 people.
The self-exclusion scheme has been pivotal in raising the awareness of gambling harm among people of all ages, including the younger generation, with GAMSTOP reporting a 31% YoY growth of registered people between the ages of 16 and 24 in the second half of 2023.
This was in part achieved thanks to GAMSTOP’s proactive approach towards gambling harm prevention by launching initiatives like university campus tours that provide further education on the values of self-exclusion.
Fiona Palmer, GAMSTOP CEO, commented: “We are continuing to see a year-on-year increase in the number of registrants, which shows the importance of self-exclusion for anyone struggling with their gambling, alongside other blocking tools and support. We want to continue raising awareness of GAMSTOP to anyone who might benefit from self-exclusion and to the friends and families of anyone affected by gambling.
“The prevalence of young adults among GAMSTOP’s registrants shows the importance of educating younger consumers and we will continue our outreach to this age group in 2024, working collaboratively with like-minded organisations and harnessing the support of our football club partners.”
The majority of people signing up to the GAMSTOP scheme (55%) do so for a period of five years, which is currently the longest option available in the UK.
Harj Gahley, Non-Executive Director of gambling charity Red Card and registered with GAMSTOP, has suffered gambling addiction for 10 years.
“As the prevalence of online gambling has continued to grow in the UK, schemes such as GAMSTOP have become a necessary lifeline for thousands of vulnerable people. For me, GAMSTOP has been a crucial part of my recovery knowing that I’m safely blocked from being able to gamble online,” Gahley stated on GAMSTOP’s commitment to preventing gambling harm.
“With the start of a new year comes the opportunity to implement changes in one’s life, I can’t recommend GAMSTOP highly enough for anyone, young or old, male or female, who might be suffering from gambling-related issues.”
