Sports jerseys and bib numbers decorate the walls of Will Bush’s room. A hat with the outline of Oregon embossed on it sits atop his head. Senior year for any University of Portland (UP) student can be hectic, no less for a student athlete. Still, for Will – a transplant from Colorado – he’s dedicated time to working with VOA Oregon’s Prevention Services. Alongside fellow athletes across Oregon, these students developed materials to bring awareness to problem gambling related to sports betting.
In over 30 states, including Oregon, wagering on sports is legal, both online and in-person. And, with an industry worth over $6.6 billion in revenue in 2022, more states are deciding whether to legalize the practice (Gaming Today, 2023).
“[As athletes] school is your first priority, then your athletics, then your social life,” Will said. Alongside this program, Will serves as president of UP’s Student Athlete Advisory Committee. “Student athletes don’t always know the internal workings of things and what’s going on around them. With sports betting being legalized, student athletes are at risk of getting addicted.”
To tackle the rising risk, Prevention Services helps student athletes better understand how widespread sports betting is and their risks of developing a problem gambling issue.
According to a 2023 report by the NCAA, student athletes are more likely to engage in sports betting. The report finds that sports betting capitalizes on the athlete’s relation to sports. Furthermore, evidence from Buffalo State University supports a connection between age and gambling. The younger someone begins gambling, the more likely they are to develop a problem gambling issue. Combined, college-aged athletes are at an even higher risk of developing an addiction to gambling. Plus, with sports betting banned by the NCAA, student athletes can jeopardize their careers.
Prevention Services’ work enables it to expand its reach to a more complete range of youth at risk. The goal: equip individuals with the skills, knowledge, and confidence to make healthy decisions. Prevention is not about demonizing behavioral health issues. Instead, it’s about preventing addiction through awareness and strong family/community support.
"When people think about problem gambling, they think about someone sitting at a slot machine. It feels far away – like it doesn’t affect them."
Also included in Prevention Service’ scope are high school students in Multnomah County. Through two-way collaboration, student athletes help develop materials to share with other athletes. High schoolers mirror this by giving feedback on presentations given to them on addiction and problem gambling. But as Anna Bledsoe, Director of Prevention Services at VOA Oregon, says, students would rather hear about substance abuse.
“When people think about problem gambling, they think about someone sitting at a slot machine,” Anna said. “It feels far away – like it doesn’t affect them. But sports betting and gaming have gambling elements folded-in, putting [students] at higher risk.”
In addition to how often sports betting is overlooked as gambling, Anna says that problem gambling is a hidden addiction. Someone’s struggle often goes unnoticed until their situation escalates – like going bankrupt. But, even before that, poor mental health, negative health impacts, social isolation, and more continue to affect them.
In the coming year, Anna’s team at Prevention Services will look to scale the campaign they developed with the student athletes. Their goal is to share the materials made to colleges across Oregon. For Will, someone who wants to look out for his fellow athlete, his hope is that his work brings awareness to an issue often overlooked until it becomes a problem.