The Decade I Lost to Gambling | Mark Kempster

Gambling’s been baked into Australian culture for generations. Having a punt with your mates is as normalised today as a beer and schnitty at the pub, but for a lot of young men in particular, it quickly grows into a monster that destroys lives. Australians lose around $32 billion every year gambling, making us the biggest losers in the world, and the fastest-growing part of that is online sports betting. Research shows that among Australians aged 18 to 34 who gamble online, more than 80% are at risk of harm, and about one in four are already in the high-risk category.

Mark started betting as a teenager and spent more than a decade trapped in the cycle of chasing his losses, lying to the people he loved, and slowly losing himself, almost costing him everything. Now six years free from gambling, Mark’s fighting for systemic change to help others escape harm from this insidious industry. This is Mark Kempster...