When it comes to European football (soccer), the word fan could easily be substituted for fanatic. Indeed, there is a large population of UK residents who love their favourite football clubs to their very core. That translates to a lot of football fans who look to their teams for leadership by example.
In the UK, there is a very close connection between fans who love football and those who love betting on football. From the friends who bet a pound on a match to the UK online sports bettor who wagers big money through online sportsbooks, the UK football betting community is vast. Since the leagues and teams know that many fans are betting on football matches, there is an unspoken need for them to always be mindful. They need to be mindful of promoting responsible gambling and protecting the sport from infiltration by rogue gambling elements.
The Relationship Between the Professional Football Leagues and the UK Gambling Community
For decades, there has always been an uneasy alliance between professional football interests and the UK gambling community. In a sense, it would be fair to suggest both parties need each other in order for both of them to exist at the highest level. Given this fact, both parties need to behave responsibly for the sake of fans and bettors.
What UK football fans and bettors want is assurance the games are being played fair without interference from the gambling community. This is especially important to the UK sports gamblers who are risking their hard-earned money in blind faith that the leagues and teams have taken steps to ensure fair and responsible play.
How UK Professional Football Leagues and Teams Support Responsible Gambling Initiatives Through GamStop
In recent years, the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) has seen the UK online sports betting community grow at an amazing rate. Seeing this, they have come to realize that more online sports gambling activity is going to eventually translate to more problem gambling issues. That is exactly the reason the UKGC developed and fully supports the GamStop Self-exclusion scheme.
Since the UKGC requires its licensed online operators to subscribe to GamStop, they are now two types of sports betting and online casino providers operating in the UK. On one hand, there are licensed operators that follow the UKGC’s GamStop membership mandate. Conversely, there are non-GamStop operators that operate outside the rules. For what it’s worth, reviews of the top non-GamStop betting operators are available at www.nongamstopodds.com
As part of its alliance with the UK gambling community through sponsorship deals, the UK’s top football leagues also support GamStop. They do so by promoting the scheme through their team websites and promotional materials. It’s vital that they show this support at a time when online sports betting is growing throughout the world. By doing so, it sends a message to football fans and bettors. That message is the leagues and teams are committed to protecting the image of the sport while also showing a willingness to stand behind UK gamblers who could fall prey to gambling addiction.
What is GamStop?
It’s near impossible for an online sportsbook or casino to monitor and control the activities of its customers. After all, its customers are grown adults who have the right to gamble online absent causing harm to others.
Still, online gambling operators do need to be intimately involved in protecting society from the ravages of gambling addiction. Most operators are doing that by obtaining licensing with the UKGC and abiding by the Commission’s directive to subscribe to the GamStop Self-exclusion scheme. By subscribing, it gives operators the ability to offer customers direct access to the program.
When the program is available, it’s incumbent on UK online gamblers to use the program if they sense gambling addiction is on their horizons. In such cases, the GamStop registration process is easy and free. All they have to do is provide basic personal information, select their own self-exclusion periods, and abide by the terms of the program. Effectively, they will be blocked from opening new UK online gambling accounts or using existing accounts.
For better or worse, there is a loophole in the who process. Should a sports bettor or casino gambler want to start gambling online again while under GamStop’s exclusion, they do have ways of doing.
One of the easiest ways for registered GamStop gamblers to beat the GamStop self-exclusion is to simply register with and gamble through one of the aforementioned non-GamStop gambling sites. For sure, there are quite a few reputable and reliable operators that are operating in the UK without licensing. No licensing means no way to access the GamStop database to identify blocked gamblers.
Here’s the bottom line. The UK’s football teams and leagues are influencers in local communities. In that role, they have to act in a responsible manner. That means protecting football’s integrity while also offering support for the problem sports gambler who might be struggling.
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