Reemphasising a commitment to utilise the power of sport to spread safer gambling messages Kindred Group, via its 32Red brand, has teamed up with Wayne Rooney to deliver a ‘Stay In Control’ series.
Hosted at the training facility of Championship side Derby County, where the ex-England captain currently occupies a player/coach role, Rooney is joined by former professional footballer Scott Davies, who promotes responsible and safer gambling through his work with Epic Risk Management.
In episode one of the series Rooney addresses his role and responsibility as a senior member of the Derby roster, as well as giving an insight into the part gambling played during his time as a young professional that had to spend a significant amount of time away from home.
Responding to a quote made within his autobiography that read “I had an idea I was doing badly and did what most gamblers do, I chased my bets and tried to recoup my losses by putting on bigger sums,” Rooney comments: “I was a young lad [who had] just come into a lot of money. And when you go away with Manchester United, to an away game, you stay in a hotel, and especially when you’re away with England, you’re in a hotel for seven to 10 days, you get bored and you end up doing things to fill time, and at that time gambling was one of them.
“It was easy to put bets on and at that time, it wasn’t like I had to into a bookies to put bets on where there were limits, this was over the phone where it was just numbers and it didn’t feel like real money and before you know it, you’ve lost quite a bit of money.”
Adding: “I won at the start actually, a couple of bets and thought this is easy, it’s easy money. So it sucks you in a bit more and then ended up losing ended up down, ended up chasing my bets, trying to win my money back.”
Speaking to CasinoBeats during Responsible Gambling Week of the role sport can play in spreading such messages, with its community initiative ‘Team Talks’ via 32Red’s Derby County sponsorship earning praise, Kindred infuses Stay In Control with a number of responsible gambling tips.
Commenting on LinkedIn Paul Buck, CEO of Epic Risk Management, lauded the “interesting” insight, stating: “Wayne’s thoughts as a 32Red ambassador show the importance of impactful and effective education to elite sportspeople and how programmes like the EFL Sky Betting & Gaming EPIC Risk Management five year education programme can have a positive effect on players, clubs, sports and the wider community.”
