I'm Calvin a compulsive gambler in recovery. I started gambling a few pounds a week on football pools when I was 19. At first it wasn't an issue, and was just a bit of fun. However, in my early 20's I started gambling online to the point of being completely out of control. Every Friday was payday, and I would wake up in the early hours knowing my wages had hit the bank and gambled the majority of my wages away. Even if I won a substantial amount of money I would just keep going until I lost everything. I racked up £1000s of debt due to my gambling, and my mental health really suffered. I would often just look in the mirror and scream at myself, but still I just continued in the cycle of self destruction. My gambling addiction had a massive impact on my family, relationships and also my love for football as I started to become more interested in gambling rather than enjoying the beautiful game that millions of people love. Gambling advertising and sponsorship is rife in football, the rise in gambling advertisement around football stadiums is shocking. There are 409 deaths related to gambling every year in England alone and a YouGov study from this year shows that 2.9 million people are either already addicted or at risk of being so, with a further 3.3 million classified as “affected others”. These stark figures show what we already know: gambling harm is not an issue affecting just a small minority, it is severely harming – sometimes killing – many. To prevent any young fan from experiencing what I and so many others did, I'm urging Arsenal FC to cancel all gambling partnerships, say no to any new offers, and back The Big Step campaign. The Big Step is a campaign to end all gambling advertising and sponsorship in football, led by people harmed by gambling. We are part of Gambling with Lives, a charity set up by the families and friends of young people who have taken their own lives as a direct result of gambling.

My name is Joe, I am in recovery from a Gambling Addiction, and ever since my first game at Roker Park in 1995 I have been obsessed with football and in particular Sunderland Association Football Club. I ended up being correctly imprisoned for nearly 5 years after committing fraud to the value of around three quarters of a million pounds which I used to fund my gambling addiction. I am now approaching 6 years into my recovery from Gambling, attending Gambling Anonymous meetings weekly. I am passionate about my recovery and take it seriously for both myself and my loved ones. As part of the many stringent barriers to prevent any risk of relapse, I have not been back to the Stadium of Light since June 2017. On 26th April 2022 I was rather proud to write to what I still considered, my club, as I was led to believe that at the moment, due to my family still attending games, there is next to no promotion of Gambling apart from the obvious Sky Bet mentions due to the league sponsorship which is out of the club’s hands. My letter was to introduce to the club a campaign, close to my heart called, The Big Step. Their campaign is to end all gambling advertising and sponsorship in football, led by people harmed by gambling. They are part of Gambling with Lives, a charity set up by the families and friends of young people who have taken their own lives as a direct result of gambling. Sunderland A.F.C also have a recent past with the Gambling Industry, the club was made been aware of the potential harm gambling can cause to their supporters, both young and old. Following the club’s sponsorship with Dafabet (2015-2019), they were set to be replaced with BetDaq in 2019. However, GVC, who owned BetDaq pulled out of all their existing shirt sponsorship deals as part of their ‘Changing for the Bettor’ initiative as they stated they were dedicated to tackling harm caused by gambling. GVC committed to unilaterally ending all football shirt sponsorship deals with UK teams and banning perimeter board advertising at football grounds, to allow sporting fans to watch their favourite teams without seeing any incentives to bet. Next door to the Beacon of Light is now the home for the NHS Northern Gambling Service which has opened a new clinic in the Northeast which will see and treat more of the thousands of people across the north of England suffering with gambling addiction. On 29th June 2022, still having heard nothing from my club, it was announced that their new shirt sponsor was to be Spread-Ex. At this current time, I can never see myself ever returning to the Stadium of Light and have never felt as distant from the club I truly loved.

In April 2021, my husband Luke Ashton took his life because of gambling. The gambling operators didn’t stop him, instead they gave Luke so-called “free bet” bonuses so that he would gamble more, even when he was trying to stop. Apart from his family, Leicester City FC was Luke’s biggest passion. So it is beyond saddening that LCFC has the most gambling partners of any English club. What example does this set to young Foxes fans and the tens of thousands of people harmed by gambling in our community – including people whose lives have been shattered after losing loved ones to gambling? How do LCFC’s gambling partnerships, coupled with the broad range of undisputable evidence that shows gambling is addictive and harmful – leading to 409 suicides a year in England alone – fit with the club’s safeguarding policy to protect its staff and young supporters? After Luke died, I made a vow to take our son to every Leicester City home game. We had kept to that, but soon he no longer wanted to go. He asked me why they had the word “bet” and other gambling adverts flashing incessantly around the pitch? His eyes are drawn to them, they are inescapable, and he sinks into his seat when he sees them. What do you say to a child that loves football but has lost his dad to the very thing that’s being advertised as fun around his club’s stadium? To prevent any other families from going through what we’ve gone through, I’m asking Leicester City FC to commit to ending its relationships with all its gambling partners, to say no to any new partners, and to back The Big Step campaign.

My son Philip was 29 when he took his own life in 2017 after becoming addicted to gambling. Philip was a huge football fan – Manchester United is our family team and he loved them. Like many of his friends, Philip started out by gambling on football but then using started fixed-odds betting terminals (FOBTs) and online casino games as his addiction worsened. Football started Philip’s addiction – it was his ‘in and sold him the idea that gambling was a safe activity. One study recently found that 700 gambling adverts can appear during a single televised Premier League game. The game my son loved told him that gambling was safe and fun, but it didn’t tell him about any of the risks – about the high suicide risk or how dangerous certain gambling products are. Public Health England estimates there are 409 suicides linked to gambling each year in England alone, with a study finding that people suffering from gambling disorder are 15 times more likely to take their lives. There are up to 1.4 million people addicted to gambling in the UK and football must stop selling the idea gambling is safe.

My beautiful daughter Kimberly Rebecca Wadsworth took her life on 5th June 2018 at 32 years of age, after struggling with gambling addiction. Kimberly’s addiction came rapidly, she was given “VIP” status by a gambling firm and was groomed and given “free bet” bonuses and similar promotional offers to keep her gambling, even when she was clearly losing large, unsustainable amounts of money. Kimberly was born and grew up in Leeds and was a United supporter, and went to games at Elland Road. Every time she watched Leeds play she would have been encouraged to do the thing that was destroying her life. I was recently grateful to meet with the club to share Kimberly's story. I know they do great work in the community, but they must also make a stand against harmful gambling advertising. There are 409 gambling-related suicides every year, and each death is one too many. Gambling needs to stop being advertised on TV, on football shirts and around the grounds. These highly addictive products must also be regulated properly to stop people from dying like my daughter did. Support this campaign for your children's sake, for your grandchildren, and our future generations, because with highly addictive products and predatory marketing, addiction can happen to anyone. The only messaging we see is that gambling is “FUN” and other subliminal messaging that normalises it where the reality is that gambling kills every day.

My son lost his best friend, Jack, to suicide caused by gambling addiction. There are 409 deaths related to gambling every year in England alone and a YouGov study from this year shows that 2.9 million people are either already addicted or at risk of being so, with a further 3.3 million classified as “affected others”. These stark figures show what we already know: gambling harm is not an issue affecting just a small minority, it is severely harming – sometimes killing – many. To prevent any young fan from experiencing what Jack and so many others did, I'm urging Derby Country FC to cancel all gambling partnerships, say no to any new offers, and back The Big Step campaign.

My husband had a lifelong addiction to gambling, which was spurred on by his love for football - especially Southampton FC. He passed away nearly 10 years ago now and I miss him every day, but memories of the harm caused by gambling have stayed with me. Every time I see a gambling advert in football it is a painful reminder of what this addiction stole from us. He supported Southampton all of his life and in his memory, I am urging his club to get rid of all gambling partnerships - especially on their shirt. I know the devastation caused by gambling and advertising played a huge role. There were many times he was trying to stop and would be lured back in by them. They need to be banned. There are 409 deaths related to gambling every year in England alone. A YouGov study from this year shows that 2.9 million people are either already addicted or at risk of being so, with a further 3.3 million classified as “affected others”. These stark figures show what we already know: gambling harm is not an issue affecting just a small minority, it is severely harming – sometimes killing – many. To prevent any young fan from experiencing what my husband and so many others did, I'm urging Southampton to cancel all gambling partnerships, say no to any new offers, and back The Big Step campaign.

My name is Sean, I am a recovering gambling addict, I suffered for 14 years in the grips of the hands of gambling companies, taking every penny I earned and developing my behaviour into something that was not normal to those that knew me. This all started from my first bet, underage at the age of 15 in my local ladbrokes on the way to the cov game. Since then, we have seen a rise in gambling advertisement around football stadiums and over the last 5 years we have seen a massive influx of front of shirt sponsorship. During second season at Birmingham we announced we would have a gambling sponsor, Boylesports. This meant that people would be walking around the streets of cov as walking billboards for a betting company. The stranglehold of betting companies on football clubs was never more prominent when we renewed it for 2 more years upon our return to the Ricoh and the club posted google map searches and directions to every Boylesports shop in the city. This led to me getting involved with the Big Step. It is a an off branch to the charity - Gambling with lives, a charity set up by the bereaved families of those who have committed suicide due to a gambling addiction ruining every aspect of their lives to the point of no return. The aim of the Big Step is to highlight the rise of front of shirt sponsorships to the government and the damage that seeing such advertisement will do, there are already 55,000 children identified as having a gambling addiction in the country and until we get rid of front of shirt sponsorship it will only get worse. I know people will use the phrase that 'they don't print gambling sponsors on kids shirts' but realistically, how many secondary school kids do you know can still fit into childrens clothes? Look around up the CBS this season and see how many kids 100% under the age of 18 that will have 'Boylesports' on their shirts. Where do you think those kids are going to go for their first bet? There is a reason why these companies are acting like vultures and trying to take over our beautiful game. If you want to send a message to the government to ban this vile practice of advertising on the front of our shirts then please sign and send on - RT, message, anything. You can also get involved with the Big Step by clicking on this link below. www.the-bigstep.com

My name is Simon and I have suffered with a gambling addiction for 11 years. I am now in recovery but it has not been easy and started with a bet on football with the lads in the pub. This escalated quickly and have lost close friends and family from this addiction. I would never want this to happen to anyone else and so easy to get addicted. There are 409 deaths related to gambling every year in England alone and a YouGov study from this year shows that 2.9 million people are either already addicted or at risk of being so, with a further 3.3 million classified as “affected others”. These stark figures show what we already know: gambling harm is not an issue affecting just a small minority, it is severely harming – sometimes killing – many. To prevent any young fan from experiencing what I and so many others did, I'm urging Brighton and Hove Albion FC to cancel all gambling partnerships, say no to any new offers, and back The Big Step campaign.

My best mate is a gambling addict but thankfully is well on the way to recovery. We have known each other for around 14 years, 12 of which he was suffering a secretive and destructive addiction. Like many the path started with betting on the football. Gambling-related harm effects over 3 million people in the UK, their has been 409 gambling-related suicides in the UK each year, and 2.9 million people are addicted or at risk of being addicted. The industry has been accepted as the norm in many young people lives, and this has been achieved through gambling advertising. A norm that is causing misery, a norm that football is accepting and helping to promote. Ipsos Mori found that 37% of 11-16-year-olds in England and Scotland have gambled in the last 12 months and almost 2% of these are classified as ‘problem’ gamblers. Huddersfield Town Football Club mission statement states 'We will do the right thing by our supporters and our community, even when nobody else is there to see it' can the club hand on heart feel they are achieving this by allowing gambling partnerships and advertising and promoting such a dangerous addiction? I’m calling on terrier fans to join with a growing wave of support for an end to gambling sponsorship in football. In doing so, we can make football safer. Please support me by adding your name to this petition.

Gambling with Lives want to end gambling sponsorship in sport but particularly football. Our son Lewis was a lifelong Owl and his ashes are all around his favourite ground Hillsborough. He took his own life at the age of 34 as a direct result of his gambling addiction. We implore his club and all the rest of the football community to realise what these gambling company vultures are doing to vulnerable sports fans across the UK and demand an immediate ban of all gambling advertising across ‘the beautiful game’…. Not one more person should suffer the pain his family and all his friends experienced as a result of his illness…. Because gambling companies prey on the most vulnerable, invading their lives by way of mobile devices, offering them more and more ways to increase the addiction dependency and driving them further and further into despair… Gambling advertising must STOP now!!!!!

The local councillors for Llantarnam ward have decided they want to destroy a vital grassland habitat without consulting constituents first. The old Llantarnam school rugby fields have been left to rewild for many years now. There is no access issues with the field already having a path around the perimeter and this destruction can’t be justified by any safety issues. The area is currently supporting an abundance of wildlife from insects to small mammals/birds and is providing a perfect hunting ground for Owls that are struggling in other areas of Wales due to a lack of grassland that has been left to rewild like this. The area is also now home to many wildflower species that are supporting local pollinators. The fact it has been left to rewild for so long also means that saplings including Oak trees have started to grow here. It would be a travesty to destroy this vital and unique habitat. The Llantarnam ward already has an abundance of open green fields and sports fields for people to use but what it doesn’t have is another large habitat like this that has been left alone to rewild. Destroying this habitat would go against Torfaen councils own self declared Nature Emergency. The benefits of the rewilding the area also don’t just stop at the benefits for nature. Access to nature has proven benefits for peoples mental and physical well-being and many residents have already told me that this areas destruction would impact them greatly. This site needs to designated as Local Nature Reserve (LNR) by the council for its amazing biodiversity. This area is vital and unique habitat that has benefits both for nature and for people. Destroying an area that has been left to rewild for this long would go against the councils own self declared nature emergency.