A former professional footballer from England is urging people with gambling addiction to “confide in someone.”
Tony Kelly, who was previously signed to Bristol City at 16, has spoken with BBC Radio Bristol to share his story about addiction and recovery.
The former athlete, who is from Coventry, explained how he started gambling on horses and football, and then greyhounds.
“When I saw the older players go to the bookmakers to put their football bets on, that was my way to join in,” he told the radio station.
Before finishing his career at 30 years old, Kelly had started gambling in casinos and found himself in more than £500,000 (roughly $668,717) of debt. “I often wonder to myself, how did I not get to the point of no return? I lost absolutely everything.”
The gambling almost cost him his two houses and relationship issues. It was in 2009 when the footballer filed for bankruptcy.
Gambling addiction is impacting many worldwide
Tony Kelly isn’t alone in his previous gambling struggles, as the NHS reported that around 138,000 people in the UK could be problem gambling. A further 1.3 million people could be engaging in either moderate or low-risk gambling, although other research estimates the figure could be even higher.
In December 2024, the NHS stated it was facing an “uphill battle” with demand for gambling addiction support more than doubling since last year.
When going through the recovery process, Mr Kelly wrote and published the book Red Card. “When I went on BBC Breakfast [to promote the book] that was it, because the feedback from that was unbelievable.
“It opened my eyes in terms of how many people it resonated with.”
“I knew then I had been in denial for years. It was a massive weight off my shoulder.”
Since then, he has gone on to found the Red Card Gambling Project which aims to help others with gambling addiction. “I strongly urge that before you hit rock bottom, you will have your wins, but over a long period of time it will destroy you.
“You’ve got to confide in someone, you’ve got to talk because you will end up hitting rock bottom, and even worst.”
Featured Image: AI-generated via Ideogram
