The Adelaide Crows join Here For The Game
The Adelaide Football Club has joined DHS’s Here For The Game campaign, which challenges the normalisation of gambling in sport.
The Here For The Game campaign forms part of a broader prevention initiative to raise awareness of gambling harm and educate the community about the risks attached to sports betting.
The Crows join a chorus of other elite sporting clubs including Adelaide United, the Adelaide 36ers and the Adelaide Giants, in supporting the principle ‘we’re here for the game, not the gambling’.
Raising awareness through advertising
The latest advertising campaign featuring the Adelaide Crows challenges the convergence of sport and gambling, promoting ways South Australians can help keep themselves safe from gambling harm. Here For The Game also seeks to create opportunities for parents to have conversations with their children about this topic, and provide helpful resources for anyone concerned about this issue.
This AFL season, commuters going to Crows’ home games can look forward to seeing footy heroes Riley Thilthorpe and Anne Hatchard on tram advertising and at train and bus stations promoting the positive aspects of sport, such as the atmosphere and memories it creates, rather than gambling during sporting events. As part of the partnership with the Adelaide Crows there will also be on-ground, television, outdoor, online and social media ads featuring Riley and Anne to help spread the message among footy fans and the wider South Australian community that you don’t have to gamble to enjoy footy.
Role models spread the message
Crows CEO Tim Silvers said the Club was pleased to help remind people of the enjoyment football and all sport provides, without the need for betting to enhance that.
“As an elite sporting club we know that we have a responsibility towards our fans, especially kids, to promote positive behaviours and attitudes,” Silvers said. “Joining the Here For The Game campaign is a great fit with that responsibility and it gives us another platform to be role models for youngsters. We would love for our fans and members to be at our games because they enjoy the atmosphere and the quality of athleticism and being part of the action, not because they feel a need to place bets on every kick.”
No sports betting ads at Adelaide Oval
The Office for Problem Gambling (OPG) believes the Crows’ backing will considerably boost the positive Here For The Game messaging and have a far-reaching impact on young people and kids.
According to Rory Spreckley, Manager of the OPG, one would be able to fill Adelaide Oval twice with the number of South Australian gamblers experiencing gambling harm in SA. “This is why it’s quite significant that there will be no sports betting advertisements shown at Adelaide oval during any of the Crows’ home games – something that hasn’t happened in a very long time,” he says.
He points out that today’s young people don’t know a world without gambling advertising at saturation levels. “It’s something we and many other South Australians are concerned about.”
Have the conversation with your children
After reaching an audience of over 9 million in the first year of the Here For The Game campaign, the OPG is confident the Crows can build on this early success and deliver its positive and important message to more South Australians.
Research shows adults are concerned about the amount of sports betting advertising children are exposed to and most adults want to talk to their kids about the risks of betting on sports. However, very few parents feel informed enough to have the conversation.
“The website hereforthegame.com.au has tips on how to start the conversation, interesting stats and facts about risky betting,” says Rory. “If you head on over there, you might even bump into a Crows player or two.”
For more information about Here For The Game visit: Here for the game.
