A new gambling awareness programme for football players has been delivered to every senior football team in the League of Ireland, organisers said on Wednesday.
It has reached more than 1,250 players, as well as FAI staff and club and match officials within three months of inception. This marks the completion of the initiative’s first phase.
Programme scales across men’s, women’s and academy football
Funded by Flutter, the three-year partnership between the League of Ireland (LOI) and education provider EPIC Global Solutions (EPIC) began in January. The initiative has successfully delivered workshops across all 32 senior men’s and women’s teams in the league.
Designed to run 70 sessions per year, the gambling awareness programme anticipates engaging over 2,000 participants annually. It aims to enhance understanding and prevent gambling-related harm within the football community.
“It is great to see the significant impact this programme is having in supporting and guiding players,” said Stephen McGuiness, general secretary of the Professional Footballers Association of Ireland.
Organisers said more than 1,000 players had participated in workshops since the programme launched. Moreover, almost 100 Football Association of Ireland (FAI) staff attended sessions at the federation headquarters in Dublin this week.
Rebranded from EPIC Risk Management in 2023, EPIC has tailored its sessions to incorporate lived experiences from high-profile figures. For instance, former Liverpool defender Dominic Matteo spoke openly about his personal struggles with gambling debts in the Irish programme.
Partnering with Sky Bet, the company has provided similar training across the English Football League for the past eight years.
Gambling awareness programme delivers measurable player impact
Initial data released by EPIC underscores the effectiveness of the sessions. Post-workshop surveys reveal shifts in participants’ awareness and confidence:
- 89% of male and female participants said they were confident they could recognise signs of harmful gambling behaviour and knew how to raise concerns
- Reported awareness of FAI and UEFA integrity regulations rose to 94% after sessions
- Female participants gave particularly strong quality ratings, with 98% scoring sessions between 8 and 10 out of 10
LOI officials described the data as providing “gender‑specific insights” to shape future messaging and interventions.
Paul Buck, CEO of EPIC, remarked on the outcomes: “Seeing 89% of players confident in recognising harmful gambling behaviour – and knowing how to respond – validates everything we’ve built this programme around. When education comes from former players who’ve lived these experiences, it resonates.”
“We look forward to rolling out the education programme across our clubs academy teams over the next few months and we’re confident this prevention-based approach will have a significant impact over the three years of this partnership,” added Mark Scanlon, director of the League of Ireland.
The programme arrives as Ireland’s gambling regulatory landscape undergoes changes. The Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland (GRAI) officially came into force in March 2025, with betting licence applications opening in February 2026 as part of a phased rollout.
