UCFB’s Global Institute of Sport (GIS) will join forces with EPIC Risk Management to deliver a pioneering gambling-harm awareness event at the iconic Wembley Stadium.
The partnership, which also sees GIS become EPIC’s official education partner, will involve the two parties coming together to host the inaugural Global Gambling Harm in Sport Summit on Wednesday 5th October.
Taking place at the world famous Wembley Stadium, home to one of GIS’ unique UK campuses, the summit will enable a host of the world’s premier executives and welfare professionals from elite sport and esports to gather and learn how best to tackle the issue of gambling harm in their industry.
🤝 We're pleased to announce a new ground-breaking partnership with @epicpgc which will see both companies join forces to explore the issues around gambling and addiction within sport.
— Global Institute of Sport (@GIS_sport) August 1, 2022
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The invite-only audience will be presented with the findings from the first year of activity by EPIC’s Pro Sport Advisory Board, and will have an opportunity to feed into the future direction of the Board’s mission, by discussing their own relevant experience of gambling harm within their institutions via panel discussions and round-table breakout groups.
A number of inspiring guest speakers will appear at the event, these include Steph Shilton, wife of England men’s football record international cap holder Peter, who will explain how her family life was deeply affected by her husband’s harmful relationship with gambling, and a number of former professional sportsmen whose careers were affected by a preoccupation with betting.
Commenting on the event, GIS president Sharona Friedman, said: “We’re delighted to have partnered with EPIC Risk Management to deliver the Gambling Harm Prevention in Sport Summit at our iconic Wembley stadium campus.
“The Global Institute of Sport wants to help address some of the key issues across sport and we look forward to working with EPIC Risk Management on facilitating this discussion as well as working to create future recommendations of best practice.
“Bringing together leaders from across the sports industry to all put forward insight and experiences related to the issues around gambling related harm is the first step in exploring how we can best work towards reducing the risks associated.”
John Millington, senior director at EPIC Risk Management, added: “Problem gambling can affect any individual from any walk of life, but several academic studies have reached the same finding that athletes are up to four times more likely to suffer its consequences.
“Clearly, education and prevention work for those who regularly participate in competitive sport is a hugely important in tackling this issue. This summit is designed to bring in experts across the professional sport eco-system to delve into this issue and look at ways of protecting those most vulnerable from gambling harm.
“GIS are the perfect partner to help undertake research and mine data on this topic and have joined forces with us to ensure that we can ensure that the right people can continue to receive it, contribute to it, and act upon it.
“They will be making a vital contribution to the Pro Sport Advisory Board in the longer term via their new status as our Education Partner and we’re delighted that their iconic base at Wembley Stadium will be the perfect setting for some important discussions to take place among the people who can enact genuine change for the better on this issue.”
Following the event, both GIS and EPIC will release the findings of the ‘Gambling Harm in Pro Sport’ white paper to ensure that a wider sporting audience can learn from the investigations and act upon wider recommendations to remove gambling harm from their industry wherever possible.
This event has been postponed, and is now likely to take place in the new year.
Click here to learn more about the partnership between GIS and EPIC Risk Management.
