Punting on a bunch of dopes
IT’S funny, people. It’s funny.
Relax and laugh at Ben Johnson’s Sportsbet ad. See how good it feels? The hysteria over drug cheat Ben Johnson’s appearance in a sports betting ad is entirely predictable.
Outrage plays right into Sportsbet’s hands and does little more than guarantee loads and loads of lovely free publicity for the company.
The ad, which has everyone from the federal sports minister down up in arms, features “Ben Johnson and the Endorsers”. There’s also a round-up of stereotypical drug cheats, including Chinese swimmers with very large muscles, a turbo-powered Lance Armstrong-style cyclist and dodgy Eastern European weightlifters.
In the ad for the company’s new Android app, Johnson claims the phone “has tested positive for speed and power, again and again” and “Puts the roid in Android”.
Johnson also notes the 10-second download time is even faster if you “cut a few corners”.
It’s not the first time Johnson has gone down this path. In 2012, he promoted a range of energy drinks, called Cheetah Power Surge, claiming that he “Cheetah all the time”.
The Sportsbet ad is a little corny, but it’s certainly not making light of athletes taking performance-enhancing drugs.
It certainly does not, as ASADA claims “belittle the achievements of clean athletes and denigrates those who work to protect clean sport across the world”.
It’s silly and funny. It even introduces Johnson as the winner of the 1988 Olympic Gold medal for the 100m sprint, with a subtitle pointing out it was just for 48 hours.
If anything, it opens up discussions with kids about this bleak episode in sporting history.
Although Johnson shouldn’t be excused for taking drugs, which led to him being stripped of his medal, let’s not forget the race was one of the most tainted in sporting history. Six of the eight runners were suspected of doping, leading Johnson to argue he had no choice but to “join the game”. It was also 29 years ago. Johnson was right to have his career end in disgrace, but he was merely the first of many in a disgraceful era for sport.
There’s no doubt Johnson is a controversial figure, testing positive again in 1993 and even acting as a football coach to the son of dictator Colonel Muammar Gaddafi (who got kicked off an Italian team for failing a drug test).
However, the fact that we can laugh about it shows how far we have come in addressing the scourge of drugs in sport. The clear message is that drug cheats are a joke; they’re not worthy of being taken seriously in sport.
I am much more worried about the fact that Johnson is advertising a sports betting app than the daggy line-up of innuendoes from him and his cronies.
I personally hate all sports betting, but particularly ads which are designed to appeal to children, like this one.
Sports betting ads are so ubiquitous kids now think betting is a normal part of the sport, and thanks to online betting sites, kids as young as 12 can place bets. A 2012 study found kids are watching about 58 sports gambling ads in just one round of AFL. Given the increase in spending in sports betting is up 20 per cent in the past year, I am sure it’s now much more than that.
Now we are starting to understand how insidious sports betting advertising is when viewed by children. Young kids in particular don’t always understand the distinction between the odds and the score and the betting and the game.
Thankfully, a new law bans the broadcasting of sports betting ads before 8.30pm during live sporting events, and for five minutes before and after play.
Finally, a government is taking this issue seriously. While it’s a good start, I personally don’t think these reforms go far enough: I’d like to see all sports betting ads banned during all live matches, for all pre and post match shows, and for all weekend matches, even after 8.30pm.
Kids who love footy aren’t going to stop watching their team play just because it’s 8.30pm on a weekend.
So, while Johnson and his roundup of dodgy drug cheats are today’s talking point, the bigger issue of sports betting remains a real problem.