Why Are Young People Gambling More? A Look at Emerging Trends and Influences

Shifting Behaviours

According to the UKGC’s 2024 Young People and Gambling Survey, 27% of young people reported spending their own money on gambling. Nearly half (44%) had engaged with gambling in some form over the past year. Much of this involved age-appropriate experiences like family raffles or arcade machines while on holiday. But a concerning 6% of respondents admitted to spending money on age-restricted activities like slot machines or online sports betting.

That 6% might seem small at first glance. But it can’t be ignored – it reflects thousands of young people potentially accessing activities designed for adults and often without much understanding of the risks involved.

Influence Now Goes Beyond Friends and Family

Traditionally, most young people encountered gambling through family. A parent might hand over some change for a seaside arcade machine or include them in a sweepstake during a football tournament or big racing event like the Grand National. These early interactions often came with rules and boundaries and were occasional.

But the landscape is changing fast. The UKGC research found that the “sphere of influence” around young people now includes celebrities and influencers. Particularly footballers. Sponsorship deals, and product endorsements have brought gambling brands into the mainstream. Football shirts emblazoned with betting logos, streamers showcasing online casino play, and content creators celebrating big wins all contribute to a culture where gambling feels like the norm and could even be seen as aspirational for young people.

For young audiences that are still learning to distinguish between entertainment and real-world risk, this can be a powerful mix.

The Digital World Has Taken Over

Another striking finding is how heavily digital spaces are driving this trend. Most exposure to gambling now comes from the online world. Instagram stories and live sports apps all deliver a steady stream of gambling-related content. Even those not directly engaging in gambling themselves are seeing it promoted by people they follow or admire.

There’s also growing concern about in-game casino-style elements found in popular games like Grand Theft Auto. Parents may be more lax about children playing video games that are 18+ rated but they include virtual representations of games.

Players can sometimes spin roulette wheels or use slot machines using in-game currency and the lines between gameplay and real gambling start to blur. Even games like Red Dead Redemption have representations of gambling that may surprise players.

In many cases, parents may be monitoring for violent content or screen time but might not realise their children are interacting with gambling-like activities inside these digital environments. It’s a small shift but one that reduces traditional supervision and introduces gambling elements without context or caution.

Boys Face Higher Exposure

The research also highlighted that teenage boys are more likely to be at risk of exposure. Many boys tend to engage more intensively with video games and are exposed to things such as loot boxes or in-game purchases. Their higher interest in football (generally speaking), also heightens exposure due to the close links between gambling companies and football clubs.

When a favourite team is sponsored by a betting company, or a star player appears in a gambling ad, the association starts to feel familiar or even acceptable. These associations make it easier for gambling to slip into everyday digital and social spaces unnoticed.

Limited Understanding of Gambling Harm

Perhaps one of the most concerning insights from the research was how little young people understood about gambling harm. Many didn’t grasp the consequences that gambling addiction or financial loss could bring. Without that knowledge, the risks of developing harmful habits later in life become greater.

Where older generations may have experienced gambling in tangible contexts that they had to physically visit, young people today are often introduced to gambling in digital landscapes. And those moments can come without warning signs or real-life consequences until it’s too late.

The pathway into gambling is no longer as straightforward as it once was. It may start with a loot box in a mobile game or a football app suggesting a quick flutter on the next match with a sponsor. These experiences don’t always feel like gambling and often aren’t recognised as such by the young people engaging with them.

As these pathways multiply, supervision and guidance become harder to maintain. Parents may not even realise their child’s first gambling experience happened during a video game session or while scrolling through social media.