West Ham anger anti gambling campaigners

West Ham have angered anti-gambling campaigners by sending Declan Rice to a gaming convention weeks after his involvement in a now-banned advertisement for Betway.

The 21-year-old Hammer was one of several West Ham players representing the club at ICE London 2020, an event described as the gambling industry’s biggest trade show. The event’s website says that ICE once stood for International Casinos Exhibition.

Campaigners say using Rice sends the wrong message’ after West Ham sponsors Betway were forced to pull an ad in January that broke Advertising Standards Authority rules on featuring Under 25s.

Rice was at London’s ExCel centre along with team-mates Michail Antonio, Manuel Lanzini and goalkeeper David Martin on Tuesday to help promote West Ham sponsor MuchBetter who are the Hammers’official online and digital payment wallet partner.

Professor Jim Orford of Gambling Watch UK told the Daily Mail ‘Young footballers are heroes to so many young people. To use them to advertise gambling in this way is inconsistent with one of the principles of Gambling Commission regulations which is to protect children and young people from the dangers of gambling. But this is really just part of a bigger picture of English football’s now unhealthy dependence on gambling sponsorship.’ 

West Ham’s partner Socios are due to launch their fan tokens to Hammers supporters in February but the launch could be postponed with the club in meltdown at the moment.