Bolton Wanderers have backed a bid to end gambling sponsorship and advertising in sport, becoming the latest club to officially endorse the national campaign.
Spearheaded by the Against the Odds Charter, the initiative is aimed at not just helping improve gambling awareness but bringing an end to associated sponsorships in football and sport altogether.
The club expressed their support for the movement in a statement on Tuesday, 18 October, remarking: “In Greater Manchester, sport is central to the region’s culture, heritage and identity and plays a huge role in bringing communities together.
“Unfortunately, there has been a proliferation of gambling sponsorship and advertising in sport which is reinforcing a perception that betting is a normal part of watching sport.”
🗞️ Bolton Wanderers and @OfficialBWITC have pledged our support to a brand-new campaign – Against the Odds – calling for an end to gambling sponsorship and advertising in sport.
They go on to explain that the overarching goal is to “shine a light on the prevalence of gambling” throughout sporting pyramids across the UK, in the hope of ultimately “phasing out gambling sponsorship and advertising to protect children, young people, and vulnerable adults.”
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Footballing bodies, gambling awareness campaigners and concerned fans alike have been calling for such action for years now, with numerous petitions set up before the government finally put forward the bill to bring in tougher regulations.
Against the Odds campaign lead Michael Viggars criticised the copy and paste ‘gamble responsibly’ sentiment, arguing that it lacks sincerity when “every square inch of sports stadia [is] being sold to advertise dozens of different sports betting brands”.
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Credit: Twitter (various) – They’re not just on shirts, they’re everywhere you look
However, as many in political, sporting and public spheres have pointed out, gambling addiction is a serious illness and profit should never come before health and wellbeing.
Like Viggars, James Grimes of The Big Step – a similar anti-gambling in sport organisation – says that moving to Manchester helped him break free from a “12-year gambling addiction” and hopes that Bolton’s backing will see other big clubs follow suit and place themselves “on the right side of history”.
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At present, these are the EFL and non-league clubs that have joined the campaign to end gambling sponsorships in English football:
Today Bolton have joined these English clubs campaigning to end gambling sponsorship in football 🙌 pic.twitter.com/6BgAn1Hcj2
To put into facts and figures, research by campaigners suggests that gambling logos can appear more than 700 times in a single football match – that’s about six logos every minute – on kits, training gear, on perimeter advertising hoardings, dugouts, press backdrops and more.
Moreover, they estimate that around 1 in 200 people in Greater Manchester (around 14,000 adults) are suffering from “severe gambling harms”, i.e. more people than the capacity of Oldham Athletic’s Boundary Park.
3.8% of the region’s population are considered to be low to moderate risk, which equates to over 96,000 adults in Greater Manchester alone – more than the capacity of the Etihad stadium (55,097), Old Trafford Cricket Ground (26,000) and Sale Sharks’ AJ Bell Stadium (12,000) combined.
Bolton Chairman Sharon Brittan said: “Gambling addiction can have a devastating effect on individuals and their families and communities, and that’s why Bolton Wanderers Football Club is pledging our formal support of the pioneering Against the Odds campaign by signing their charter.”
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Previously sponsored by the likes of Betfred, the club knows all about the dangers of betting on a local and national scale, making the decision to close their on-site betting facilities at the UniBol Stadium back in 2021 and promise to avoid any new commercial partnerships within the gambling industry.
Here’s hoping this is just the start.
If you or anyone you know is struggling with gambling addiction, you can use vital resources such as GamCare, the National Gambling Helpline (0808 8020 133) Gamblers Anonymous UK, or just get in touch with the NHS directly for more information.
Featured Image — Bolton Wanderers (via Twitter)
Sport
Medlock Square: Manchester’s new £300 million entertainment destination on the Etihad Campus
Danny Jones
Manchester’s newest entertainment destination, located over at the ever-growing Etihad Campus, has finally been given a name ahead of its launch later this year.
Alongside the recently announced and Radisson-run hotel, Medlock Square will see the Manchester City-partnered mini leisure district aim to become a new must-visit part of the city.
Hoping to draw in crowds beyond just matchdays and those heading to concerts across the way, approximately £300 million is being pumped into the project.
With Co-op Live having already brought huge revenues into Greater Manchester, it isn’t just set to be a pricey development, but one that will look to serve as yet another money spinner for the wider City Football Group (CFG) and the City Region.
Credit: CFG (supplied)
Unveiling the first CGIs of the square this week, this new area will essentially see attractions and activities spill out of the Etihad Stadium, Co-op Live and the soon-to-open Medlock hotel and on to the campus as a whole.
With other parts of Sportcity already revolving around the footballing epicentre, such as the Manchester Regional Arena and National Squash Centre, this will not only see even more sporting events and supporters brought to the roughly 80-acre plot, but also fans of various other forms of entertainment.
For instance, within the plans that already include the food and drink offerings you would expect – with Radisson Blu backing more of the relaxation and indulgent side of things – other activities include everything from “an adrenaline-fuelled sky walk experience”, as well as zip-wire and abseiling.
We already knew about some of these from the details in Man City’s stadium expansion plans (including the likes of The Medlock and rooftop bar), and glimpses of the impending hotel opening gave us a better idea of the overall look, but there looks to be plenty more in the pipeline.
You can see a trailer for what they have in mind for Medlock Square down below.
Welcome to Medlock Square. Manchester’s newest entertainment destination. A place where mouthwatering cuisine and world class entertainment, experiences and events converge. Coming soon! pic.twitter.com/4bC7NQbMHT
As per an official press release by the fledgling team, more information on further business and employment opportunities has also now been confirmed, centring around the new ‘One Medlock Square’ structure that will be built on the campus.
“Designed to accommodate up to 300 employees, the state-of-the-art workspace will offer high-quality, modern office facilities alongside access to shared event spaces and wellness amenities, uniquely positioned within Manchester’s most exciting new destination”, the statement reads.
There’s certainly some ambitious stuff in the works, put it that way.
And, of course, these will also slot into a renovated club shop turned meagstore, an all-new Man City museum, the Co-op arena, live music and other open-air events, just to name a few. A specific opening date is yet to be scheduled, but you can guarantee it’ll be a big deal when it does launch.
Featured Images — Publicity pictures (supplied via City Football Group)
Sport
The EFL Championship set to expand playoffs to six teams in controversial move
Danny Jones
The English Football League (EFL) has confirmed that it will be expanding the Championship playoffs to six teams moving forward.
In one of the biggest changes, not just to the second tier but the domestic football pyramid in some time, it’s so far divided opinion – and that’s putting it mildly.
Starting from next season, the Championship will see half a dozen compete in its final knockout phase, meaning that the conclusion to the 2026/27 campaign has the potential to be even tastier than ever.
Besides the increased competition this will bring to the division itself, in turn, it could also help further mix things up in the Premier League too.
Revealing the watershed news on Thursday, 5 March, the EFL shared the update online, which has certainly left fans split over the decision.
Well, in truth, it seems the majority have been left shocked and angered by the announcement, with many responding with comments like, “Who asked for this?” and “Final nail in the coffin”, as well as citing “money” and “nothing but greed” as the main drivers for the changes.
EFL clubs obviously voted for the big shake-up as the added chance of fighting their way into the top flight will no doubt benefit them financially.
It remains to be seen whether this could signal similar adjustments made further down the ranks.
However, as many replied under the posts on social media, one key fear is that a team finishing in 8th – the new threshold for making it into the playoff stages – will be “slaughtered in the Prem” and that, if anything, it will highlight and/or widen the gap between the two leagues even more.
Most simply said that the current system is just “fine as it is” and “if ain’t broke don’t fix it”, but it looks like the wheels are already well and truly in motion.
Ruining the game. Finish 6th and have a chance to get promoted. People in charge are needing rid off. Every part of English football has out of touch people in charge coming up with awful ideas to keep their pay and clubs just go along with it. Tweet from 1987
Pure greed. Ultimately downgrades the look of the championship too when a team will inevitably finish 8th, probably a good 15-20 points behind autos and go up. Then get the lowest Premier League points ever
Safe to say that this is just a small taste of the overall reactions and almost universal consensus…
As detailed in the official statement by the EFL, Chief Executive, Trevor Birch, said: “Since their introduction in 1986/87, the Play-Offs have become a highlight of the domestic football calendar, capturing the drama, suspense and jeopardy that make the EFL so special.
“Following several months of discussion with Clubs and other stakeholders, we are confident this change will further strengthen the Championship as a competition and give more Clubs and their supporters a genuine opportunity of achieving promotion.”
They also clarified that “the exact final format will be agreed later in 2026.”
Are you a fan of a Championship club? Even if not, what do you make of the impending and controversial changes kicking off this year?
It’s mad how the EFL can sort a vote to increase the promotion opportunities for Championship clubs to the PL – yet still nothing on a second automatic place from the National League to L2.
No club promoted from the NL to L2 has ever come straight back down… https://t.co/tXy7aSOZ3l
Danny Jones -
19th October 2022 
