The South Sydney Rabbitohs will take part in the NRL’s season-opening double-header in Las Vegas despite receiving money from the New South Wales government’s Reclaim the Game initiative designed to reduce sports betting.

The situation has been described by anti-gambling campaigners as “laughable”.

Earlier this month, the Rabbitohs were named as one of four clubs to take part in the venture at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on 2 March next year local time, alongside the Roosters, Broncos and Sea Eagles.

Australian Rugby League Commission chair Peter V’landys said in May that opening next season in Las Vegas would help develop new broadcast and gambling markets in the US and rugby league was “perfect” to provide Americans with wagering content in different timezones. The NRL receives a cut of bets made on the sport from licensed betting outlets.

The Reclaim the Game initiative sponsors teams across five codes including the NRL’s Canterbury-Bankstown, Macarthur and Western Sydney Wanderers in the A-League, Big Bash League clubs Sydney Thunder and Sydney Sixers and the Swans in the AFL.

It promises “​​to take a stand and challenge the impact that sports betting advertising has on fans”, essentially becoming a sponsor of these teams in lieu of revenue they would otherwise receive from gambling companies.

Carol Bennett, chief executive of the Alliance for Gambling Reform, said: “It makes a mockery of any commitment to reduce gambling harm. You can’t be part of promoting gambling one week, and then claim you are promoting ‘reclaiming the game from gambling’ the next. It doesn’t work that way.”

The Rabbitohs announced their deal in 2022, at which time 78% of Rabbitohs fans agreed there was too much gambling advertising and 80% of Rabbitohs fans believed children and young people were exposed to too much gambling advertising.

Rabbitohs chief executive Blake Solly said said at the time: “Our community plays such a big role in our club, and we felt that this is a campaign we can support to reduce community exposure to sports betting advertising.”

A Rabbitohs spokesperson said this week the trip to Las Vegas did not pose any issues for its Reclaim the Game involvement. “We are an away team at next year’s event in Las Vegas. The Rabbitohs playing in this event has nothing to do with sports wagering.”

A spokesperson for the Office of Responsible Gambling said: “The South Sydney Rabbitohs are and will continue to be an important part of Reclaim the Game. They have shown their support for the initiative by publicly turning down all sports betting advertising and sponsorships, and by educating their fans and members about the risks of gambling.”

They said the office and the Rabbitohs have a “shared commitment to work together to prevent gambling harm”.

Souths halfback Lachlan Illias said in July, as part of a Reclaim the Game promotion: “I think we have normalised betting a bit too much, I think we need to take a step back and realise betting can cause harm to people and can ruin lives.”

The Rabbitohs must win in the final round of the NRL regular season this Friday against the Roosters or they will be eliminated from the top eight.