Fears NRL gambling ads are ‘exporting’ Australia’s ‘addiction’ to the Pacific

ABC NEWS (Australia)

There’s a growing conversation around the relationship between sport and gambling in Australia. But it Papua New Guinea, betting on the NRL is growing in popularity and it is happening with little oversight.

Transcript

00:00It's risky work weaving in and out of traffic, but you've got to be in it to win it.

00:10There's a big demand for betting guides.

00:13On the streets of Port Moresby, these men sell guides to lure people to nearby bookmakers.

00:20Some people have bet a little money and won money that saw them buying taxis.

00:24We all want to have a chance to win.

00:27You bet a small amount, you can win a lot.

00:30But the effects of gambling in PNG are poorly understood.

00:34I think it's a time bomb.

00:36PNG's top mental health expert says many people are naive about the risks posed by gambling.

00:43It becomes a habit which is not bringing positive.

00:47Most of the time they are losing the money.

00:51Fueling the demand is the surging popularity of NRL.

00:55But experts worry the country is importing more than just a sport.

01:00It really devastates me that we're exporting to PNG and the Pacific our gambling addiction.

01:08PNG could soon have its own NRL team, a move backed by the Australian government.

01:15But little thought has been given to how that might fuel a growing gambling problem

01:20in a poorly regulated environment.

01:23What we know is the greatest losses in Australia happen in the poorest areas.

01:28So put gambling and NRL together in PNG and the Pacific,

01:34far greater poverty, far greater losses, far greater suicides, domestic violence and crime.

01:42PNG is betting on a future with the NRL.

01:45If their bid for a team is successful, the odds are high that more problem gambling will come with it.

01:53I must win back that money that I lost betting on the NRL.

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