My 45 years hooked on gambling, by England’s Peter Shilton
Soccer hero reveals double life as an addict as outcry over betting firms’ links to mental health crisis grows
PETEr Shilton yesterday revealed he spent four decades leading a ‘double life’ as a gambling addict.
Only after losing tens of thousands of pounds did the former England goalkeeper finally escape the grip of betting firms.
‘I’ve won at most things in my life, in terms of my career, but I’ve never won at gambling,’ said the 70-year-old in an exclusive interview with the Daily Mail.
He said his problem ‘took off really badly’ with the advent of online gambling. Shilton, who holds the record for England caps, spoke out after a series of disturbing revelations about football’s increasingly close ties to betting firms.
He was moved by the stories of young men, including professional footballer Lewis Keogh, who have killed themselves over gambling addiction. The sport has become inextricably linked with the betting industry, with 27 of England’s top 44 clubs now having a gambling company for their shirt sponsor.
This month the Mail exposed how FA Cup matches are being streamed live on betting sites to any fan with an account.
Shilton’s comments will pile pressure on football chiefs to take further action to protect vulnerable fans from bookmakers’ aggressive marketing.
The former England star credits his recovery to his wife Steph, a former NHS manager who confronted him with bank statements showing his losses.
When he finally decided to scrap his habit he told her: ‘I’m losing, and I’m worried I’m going to lose you.’
Speaking out for the first time to back the Mail’s Stop the Gambling Predators campaign, Shilton said:
n He is appalled by the ‘frightening’ epidemic of online gambling and is now working with the Government to raise awareness of gambling harms including mental health problems;
n He bet on horseracing throughout his career, even acting as a ‘ bookmaker’ for his England teammates;
n His addiction worsened after retirement when he began online gambling, sometimes staying up betting until 3am;
n He was sent Christmas hampers by bookmakers. His wife once begged Betfair to cancel his account but said they refused to take action;
n He became increasingly hooked on gambling throughout a 30-year career, sometimes placing more than ten bets a day on horses.
Shilton, who played for 11 clubs including Nottingham Forest, where he won two European
Cups, said: ‘I had two lives, one as a very dedicated footballer, and another where I was addicted to gambling. I didn’t realise I was an addict until I finally stopped. When I was working I was always ultraprofessional and nothing would interfere with the football.
‘But when you’re a footballer you have a lot of spare time on your hands after training. It’s easy to sit around and gamble.’
Shilton represented England in three World Cups, and said for most players gambling was a way to keep them occupied during long tours away from home.
He recalled acting as a bookown. maker for the England squad in the 1986 World Cup, when Maradona famously scored with his ‘Hand of God’ goal.
When Shilton hung up his gloves in 1997, having competed in more than 1,000 professional matches, he says gambling had begun to rule his life.
He said: ‘It’s so easy just to get on that buzz and get hooked. When you gamble you are on a high whether you’re winning or losing. Getting that high to me is what gambling is about, you’re in a world of your Shilton said that his problems gravely worsened when online gambling came along, and he set up an account with Betfair in around 2005.
‘For the first time I could sit on a computer and bet,’ he said. ‘I just had one account with Betfair. But you could gamble into the early hours of the morning. If I got on a roll I would stay up, on odd occasions to 2am or 3am.’
His first marriage broke down in 2011, and he met his second wife Steph in 2012.
The couple married in 2016 and live together in a bungalow in West Mersea, Essex.
Shilton finally gave up gambling in 2015 with the support and encouragement of his wife.
He called up Betfair to ask them to cancel his account – only for them to try and entice him to stay.
He said: ‘It was thanks to Steph I was able to give up. The penny suddenly dropped – I thought: “I’m not winning and I never have won ... why should I put myself through this and risk losing Steph?”
‘I’ve won at most things in my life, in terms of my career, but I’ve never won at gambling. What’s the point of me carrying on? I’m just losing.’
Shilton, who has been plagued by debts from his 45 years of gambling, has now not placed a
STOPTHE GAMBLING PREDATORS ‘It’s so easy to get on that buzz’
wager for five years. He said: ‘I could be a lot richer than I am now, but I have never been happier. I will never have another bet again in the rest of my life.’
Last Thursday, Shilton and his wife had a meeting with sports minister Nigel Adams and arts minister Helen Whately to discuss the steps needed to tackle the menace of problem gambling.
They are also working with the charity Gambling with Lives, which was set up by bereaved parents.
Shilton said: ‘I’m now 70, I could just go out quietly. But I just thought I should try and make a difference. Gambling caused me a lot of problems in my life – financial and emotional. I want to help, just one person would be enough.
‘I want people to know there is light at the end of the tunnel. You can stop, that’s my message to anyone who is struggling. I understand what you are going through and it’s never easy, but with the right help you can stop.’ Shilton said there should be stricter regulations around betting, adding: ‘What’s frightening is the amount of new methods and games cropping up. The gambling epidemic can only get worse.
‘I used to be able to detach a little bit, and wouldn’t bet if I was on holiday. But these days it’s on your phone so you can be sat on a beach placing a bet.’
Shilton said a ban on credit card betting, which was announced last week, was a ‘huge step forward’.
But he added: ‘I would like to see gambling education rolled out nationally. I don’t see any difference between that and drugs and sex education.’ He also called for an end to the pervasive advertising and incentives that keep gamblers betting. ‘There are more and more incentives. I used to get a hamper at Christmas from Ladbrokes, when I told a friend of mine – they said, “Well you’re not winning then are you?”’ he said.
Shilton said he hoped to work with the Professional Footballers Association to raise awareness of gambling within the game.
He and his wife were shocked by the story of Mr Keogh, who was 34 when he took his own life in 2013.
He had played for amateur side Headingley FA and secretly accumulated £ 55,000 in debt from online gambling.
Gambling addiction has been linked to self-harm, depression and anxiety and causes two suicides a day in the UK.
Shilton received no fee for this article. A donation has been made to Gambling with Lives.
‘Epidemic can only get worse’