The official national gambling authority of Denmark, the Spillemyndigheden, has set in motion a new educational campaign that aims to inform young people, i.e. minors, about the perils that come from gambling.
This idea of educating young Danish citizens stems from a recent survey conducted by the Spillemyndigheden where it was found that nearly 15% of the minors in the country aged between 15 and 17 have at some point gambled online in the past twelve months.
Even more alarming is the statistic that 24,500 young individuals between the ages of 12 and 17 have reported experiencing gambling problems over one year.
Moreover, the Spillemyndigheden has revealed that most reports made through the official Danish hotline for gambling addiction called StopSpillet, show a pattern where the vast majority of individuals with problem gambling have started gambling before they turn 25 years of age.
According to Anders Dorph, the Director of the Danish Spillemyndigheden, the younger people are when they start gambling the higher the chances of developing gambling addiction later in life:
Young people under the age of 18 in Denmark find ways to play for money, for example through friends or family or through online gaming sites without a Danish license. We know that the younger you are when you get your start, the more chance you have of developing a gambling problem later in life. That is why, for the first time, we are directly targeting young people under 18, and we are doing it in a new, creative way.
We want to educate young people about the risks of gambling and that in the long run, the house always wins in length. In other words, gambling is not a path to fast and easy money.
Anders Dorph – Director of Spillemyndigheden
This educational campaign by the Spillemyndigheden will feature posts and videos on Instagram and YouTube where a fictional character called “the one-armed thief” entices young people and persuades them to gamble and lose money.
The video’s main character, i.e. “the one-armed thief, ” will be played by actor David Minerba, while Martin Høgsted has been entrusted with directing the content. Additionally, the Spillemyndigheden will also include social media influencers in the campaign in order to help raise awareness and reach the younger audience more easily.
To appeal to the younger audience that is intended to, Dorph states that the Spillemyndigheden will use humour and a lighter tone in the campaign to resonate with young individuals, even though it is a serious subject.
The seriousness of gambling addiction must not be diminished. But that does not mean that we have to point the finger at young people who may be tempted to gamble. We have chosen a new approach in this campaign, in which we try to open the eyes of young people through humor and irony that is in keeping with social media content trends.
The idea is to pique their curiosity, get them engaged, and talk about gambling without stigmatizing and creating fear.
Anders Dorhp – Director of Spillemyndigheden
The government of Denmark has already started a similar educational website called StyrPåSpillet, a free-to-use platform where the parents of young individuals with gambling problems get access to important information, statistics, and gambling advice.
The recent plan of Denmark to battle problem gambling, especially in minors, results in the Folketing allocating €4.02 million (DKK 30 million) to the new educational campaign between 2023 and 2025.
