5 Soccer Players Who Had Gambling Problems

BeSoccer 1 year ago |

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From an outside perspective, a football player's life seems fancy. BeSoccer

From an outside perspective, a football player's life seems fancy. They have fast cars, big mansions, and tons of money. They're super good at playing the game too.

But being a famous football player isn't always as great as it seems. They have to deal with people and many other problems that don't happen on the field.

While many can gamble responsibly on HoopCasino.com, some players suffer and struggle with gambling addiction behind the scenes.

Here, we'll talk about five players who had gambling problems during their careers.

Ivan Toney

The English forward is facing an eight-month suspension because he admitted breaking the Football Association's rule E8, which says players can't bet on soccer. The commission decided his punishment would have been even longer by three months. But they found out during their investigation that Toney has a gambling addiction.

Toney's situation is one of the most serious cases of breaking gambling rules the FA has dealt with. The commission discovered that he made 29 bets involving the team he was playing for or on loan to. Some of these bets were about his team losing, even though Toney wasn't playing in those games.

In 11 instances, he bet against Newcastle while playing for another team on loan, and the other two bets were about a match between Wigan and Aston Villa when he was on loan at Wigan but not part of the playing squad.

Making bets on your team to lose or your performance in a game can lead to a lifetime ban. Toney was also found to have done this.

He made 15 bets on himself to score and 16 on his team to win. He even gave out inside information about a match, had other people bet for him, and didn't tell everything he knew during the investigation.

Since Toney eventually admitted to the 232 rule violations from 2017 to 2021, the initial punishment of 15 months got reduced to 11. The panel agreed to lower the penalty even more after considering Toney's age – he's 27 now – and his diagnosis of addiction.

Wayne Rooney

Wayne Rooney considered one of the best strikers in the history of the English Premier League, is a true legend among soccer fans. Fans of Manchester United will never forget the incredible goals Rooney scored, which earned him immense respect throughout his career.

In his younger days, Wayne Rooney battled a gambling addiction. He used to place bets on soccer matches, dog races, and horse races, putting him in debt of almost C$1 million.

Thankfully, those challenging times are behind him, and he happily leads a life with his family. His impulsive gambling habits were partly a result of his youth and having a significant amount of money, which can be a difficult combination to handle.

Matthew Etherington

The ex-winger played for West Ham, Tottenham, and Stoke and was into poker and betting on horse races. Sadly, his love for gambling got out of control, and he ended up owing more than C$2.5 million. Eventually, he realized he needed help for his addiction.

Thanks to his mom's support, Matthew Etherington overcame his gambling problem. He teamed up with the Professional Footballer’s Association to tackle his addiction. He also spent time at a well-known place called the Sporting Chance clinic to recover fully.

Matthew said goodbye to his professional soccer career in December 2014 because of a back injury. Nowadays, he's aiming for a career in management, and he continues to go to meetings with Gamblers Anonymous to ensure he doesn't go back to his old habits.

Michael Chopra

The former forward, who used to play for Cardiff City, had a career at different levels of English football but had a tough time outside the game. Recently, he admitted to losing around £2 million because of gambling.

He even said he joined Sunderland to try and pay off his debts. His gambling troubles began as a teenager playing for their rivals, Newcastle. He bet a lot of money, up to £30,000, with his teammates before matches.

This ex-striker also got into serious trouble with the British Horseracing Authority because of suspicious betting. He did try to get help by going to the Sporting Chance clinic, a place set up by Arsenal legend Tony Adams to help athletes who are dealing with addiction and need to recover.

After playing for England, Chopra went on to play in Scotland and India. He was with teams like Alloa Athletic and Kerala Blasters before he retired in 2016.

Dietmar Hamann

The ex-German midfielder revealed that he had been gambling on and off during his career, especially when he was going through a divorce and couldn't be with his kids. Instead of dealing with his problems, Dietmar gambled and lost a considerable amount, even up to C$350,000, in one go.

After retiring from the game, he became a legendary figure at Anfield. He later coached teams like MK Dons, Leicester, and Stockport County. Even at 41, he briefly returned to playing soccer with the amateur team TuS Haltren. However, his main focus is becoming a skilled writer for various sports publications.