Perceptions of sports betting as normal, fun, and harmless are contributing to compulsive and destructive gambling among young people. A study examining young Australians’ lived experiences found widespread impacts on finances, relationships, mental health, work, and academic performance (Mancini et al., 2025). The research also found that this normalization makes it harder for young people to recognize and seek help for problematic gambling, and called for education in schools about gambling’s addictive potential as well as access to youth-focused gambling disorder treatment services.
The Link Between Sports Betting and Addiction
Many of the 50 participants in the study, all of whom reported moderate to high levels of gambling harm, described a rapid progression from casual, social sports betting to compulsive behavior (Hing et al., 2025). Some had been legally betting for only one or two years yet still reported high levels of harm.
For some, awareness of this escalation came only after gambling had become difficult to control.
“I opened my bank app and searched ‘betting’ … 55, 55, 10, 20. That’s really when it hit me … how much I was actually spending,” said a 24-year-old male participant.
This realization could shake a young person’s self-image and produce feelings of shame, since it conflicted with their view of sports betting as a risk-free, socially acceptable activity.
“I was a bit ashamed because I noticed it had gotten out of hand, from the social point to an early stage of addiction point,” said a 19-year-old female participant. “Nobody wants to think that they’re addicted, especially not young people. I’m like, ‘oh god, I look like one of those addicted old men at the pub.'”
Despite its normalization and what the study’s authors called its “sanitizing” association with athletics, sports betting carries significant risk. In the United States, as many as 17% of sports bettors reported problematic gambling behaviors, a figure that rose to 24% among fantasy sports bettors (National Council on Problem Gambling, 2024). The more frequently young men participate in sports betting, the more likely they are to develop problematic gambling, with betting frequency correlated with later gambling severity (Mancini et al., 2025).
Why Are Young Men at the Highest Risk?
The Australian study focused on a particularly vulnerable group: young adults between the ages of 18 and 25 who have just become eligible to gamble legally. Members of this group may view gambling, much like alcohol, as a rite of passage, and they are also frequently targeted by betting advertising.
Other factors that push young people toward gambling include newfound financial independence, reduced parental oversight, peer pressure, and a tendency to seek novel and risky experiences during this stage of development, particularly among men. In the United States, 72% of sports bettors are male (Statista, 2024).
The Australian study interviewed both men and women but found that young men disproportionately engage in sports betting and face a greater risk of harm. Men are more likely to follow sports, where gambling has become an integral part of fandom. Friends often bet together, sometimes in direct competition. For some young men, gambling can serve as a way of establishing social status, a dynamic that betting companies actively exploit by framing their products as games of skill.
Sports fans may believe they have the specialized knowledge needed to outsmart betting companies. Researchers identified this conviction in personal betting ability as one of the key barriers preventing young Australian gamblers from changing their behavior (Seal et al., 2022).
Early Warning Signs in Young Adults and College Students
Identifying gambling problems early can make a meaningful difference in outcomes. Common signs that a young person may be struggling with gambling fall across behavioral, emotional, financial, and academic categories.
| Category | Warning Signs |
|---|---|
| Behavioral | Spending excessive time on gambling apps or websites; hiding screens when others are nearby; maintaining multiple betting accounts or apps |
| Emotional | Intense emotional investment in sports outcomes; mood swings tied to sporting events; bragging about wins while minimizing losses |
| Financial | Inability to cover regular expenses; borrowing or stealing money; unexplained debt, unexplained cash, or new expensive items |
| Academic and Work | Declining grades or work performance; frequent unexplained absences; withdrawal from activities previously enjoyed |
Impacts: Mental Health, Declining Grades, and Substance Use
The Australian study identified harms across five areas: financial, emotional, vocational, relationships, and health. Participants reported feeling immediate regret and guilt following gambling losses. As losses accumulated, mental health declined, with many reporting anxiety and depression. About one-third said they felt worthless or like a failure. Some turned to drugs or alcohol to cope, which in turn lowered inhibitions and increased risk-taking, creating a self-reinforcing cycle between substance use and gambling.
Academic and work performance also suffered. Participants described spending time and mental energy researching bets, worrying about losses, losing concentration, and missing class or work to watch games they had wagered on.
Support Strategies for Parents and Educators
Parents and educators can help young people struggling with gambling by having open, nonjudgmental conversations about betting and challenging the idea that it is risk-free, skill-based, or socially ordinary.
Parents can set limits around access to money and maintain some oversight of their children’s financial activity. Becoming familiar with warning signs of escalating gambling, including secrecy, financial strain, and emotional difficulties, allows for earlier intervention before gambling becomes compulsive.
Any intervention should be firm but supportive. Shaming or isolating young people is counterproductive and can push them toward further gambling. Keeping lines of communication open and connecting them with professional support when needed gives them the best chance at recovery.
Sources
- Clune, S., Ratnaike, D., White, V., Donaldson, A., Randle, E., O’Halloran, P., & Lewis, V. (2024). What is known about population level programs designed to address gambling-related harm: rapid review of the evidence. Harm reduction journal, 21(1), 118. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12954-024-01032-8
- Hing, N., Rawat, V., Lole, L., & colleagues. (2025). From ‘quirky and cool’ to ‘addicted’: Lived experiences of sports betting harm in early adulthood. International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11469-025-01612-0
- Mancini, V. O., Brett, J. D., Heirene, R. M., & colleagues. (2025). Predicting problem gambling in young men: The impact of sports gambling frequency and internalizing symptoms. Journal of Gambling Studies, 41(3), 1119–1144. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10899-025-10403-0
- National Council on Problem Gambling. (2024). National Council on Problem Gambling survey shows drop in problem gambling risk, highlights ongoing challenges.
- Nyemcsok, C., Pitt, H., Kremer, P., & Thomas, S. L. (2022). Young men’s perceptions about the risks associated with sports betting: a critical qualitative inquiry. BMC public health, 22(1), 867. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-022-13164-2
- Seal, E., Cardak, B. A., Nicholson, M., Donaldson, A., O’Halloran, P., Randle, E., & Staley, K. (2022). The Gambling Behaviour and Attitudes to Sports Betting of Sports Fans. Journal of gambling studies, 38(4), 1371–1403. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10899-021-10101-7
- Statista. (2024). Interest in sports gambling in the United States as of November 2019, by gender. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1105283/sport-gambling-interest-gender/
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