Juvenile sports fans in Ireland are subject to “a saturation” of gambling messages and see gambling as an “increasingly normal part of sport”, according to research.
The study, the first of its type on the island, said this created “substantial public health risks”.
Researchers sought the views of 14-17 year old sports fans along the border, north and south.
The research team said they were concerned at findings that 15% of the children they surveyed — around one in seven — were encouraged to spend money on gambling as a “direct result” of gambling marketing.
The study, published in , was conducted by academics in University of Ulster, UCD, and Maynooth University.
“This study has heard from children on the island of Ireland who are exposed to multifaceted marketing communications in mass and social media as well as in other spaces in their daily lives,” it said.
Some 51 children in Derry, Letterkenny, and Newry took part.
The research found that most children did not watch sport on mass media, but did so on social media on their phones.
The main platforms used daily were Instagram, YouTube, Snapchat, TikTok, and WhatsApp, with Snapchat most popular among 14-15 year olds and TikTok most used among 16-17 year olds.
It found that TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube were mostly used to “alleviate boredom” with many reporting “spending hours” watching TikTok videos.
The children were able to discuss commercial associations in football, such as a gambling operator’s shirt sponsorship of English Premiership club Everton and advertisements in sports stadiums.
Generally, the children saw the commercial relationship with gambling sponsors and sports clubs as a “good fit”, although some were sceptical of it and did link gambling to personal and social harm.
Children said they used social media to look up sporting skills and follow certain events, which was balanced with habitual use, to relieve boredom.
The study said the latter habit created a “vulnerable market” for the children. It said;
The report said that the children purchased sports kits recommended by influencers on Instagram.
It said regulations in both jurisdictions were “woefully unprepared” to counteract the problem and said there was a “pressing need” for governments to impose “meaningful limitations and restrictions” on gambling marketing.