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Doug Bonjour is a veteran sportswriter with more than a decade of experience, including in the realm of sports betting. He’s written for the New York Times, Associated Press, CBS Sports and Hearst Connecticut Media...Top Crypto Casino in Saudi Arabia – BitStarz Ranked #1
Read Full BioBoyleSports has reportedly provided its biggest losers with free hospitality tickets to the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) All-Ireland Finals.
The Irish News reports that the Dundalk-based online betting company, has rewarded gamblers deep in the red with tickets to the sporting spectacle, despite the GAA’s strong anti-gambling stance.
The GAA has implemented a ban on betting advertisements, yet BoyleSports still holds a corporate box at Croke Park. The Irish News said it reviewed documents that showed many of the tickets it had issued went to bettors who had lost hundreds of thousands of euros with the bookmaker.
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This is not the first time that BoyleSports’ promotional practices have drawn controversy. Last year, the Irish News reported that BoyleSports retained an advertising hoarding on the Hogan Stand of GAA headquarters, and that it was visible during the All-Ireland Finals and other significant events, including concerts.
At the time, a spokesperson for GAA told the Irish News that box holders at Croke Park were free to use the front of their boxes for promotional activity within ASA guidelines.
A spokesperson for BoyleSports commented: “As a suite holder at Croke Park, along with every other suite holder, BoyleSports is permitted to use the front fascia of its suite for branding purposes.”
The Irish News cited a source who said that BoyleSports’ box, for which prices start at €50,000 per year, is used as “an incentive for people to gamble more.”
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The GAA has made concerted efforts to address gambling problems amongst its players. This includes awareness campaigns where players, supporters, and their families can learn about the effects of gambling issues.
Tyrone star Conn Kilpatrick has been open about his struggles. The All-Ireland winner said his gambling addiction started when he was 15 or 16, and by 2018, at the age of 21, he had racked up £15,000-£20,000 of debt.
“I was just thinking everyone is going to see my mum and dad and think, ‘Their son is the gambling addict,’ which hurt as it was nothing to do with them, they didn’t lead me down that path,” Kilpatrick said on the GAA Social podcast: “I brought shame onto the family and that was the thing that I was most wary of.”
It wasn’t until Armagh legend Oisin McConville, who had overcome gambling issues of his own, convinced him to attend Gamblers Anonymous (GA) meetings that Kilpatrick got the help he needed.
A 2023 University of Limerick study found that gambling was “pervasive” among elite intercounty GAA players. Of the 608 players who responded to an anonymous survey, 79% admitted to being current gamblers. One contributor called gambling the “biggest problem in the GAA.”
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Concerns about problem gambling are severe enough that the Bank of Ireland recently introduced voluntary card-blocking tools restricting access to online casinos, slot machines, and lottery websites. It also prohibits payments to gambling operators.
This comes as data provided by the Bank of Ireland shows a significant rise in local gambling expenditures, especially among young males. For customers between the ages of 18 and 25, spending rose 19% between January and March despite a 2% drop in total card spending. Males accounted for 71% of the wagers.
As the industry continues to evolve, the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland (GRAI), a new entity responsible for licensing and regulating gambling services, said it expects other banks to introduce similar card-blocking features soon.
