Online gambling is drawing in new, younger audiences, attracted by the excitement of risk and the prospect of quick gains.

There’s a concomitant rise in gambling addiction and self-exclusions, which is when people request to be banned from gambling venues or online sites. The number of self-exclusions has rocketed by more than 240% in the past four years, according to the National Gambling Board.

The number of people referred by the Responsible Gambling programme for treatment doubled to 2,299 in 2022/23 after a Covid-19 lull. Most of these people were in the 25-to-35-year age group.

More than half of the young adults (those between 18 and 34) surveyed by InfoQuest said they gambled because they needed money. Just under 10% said they gambled because they were depressed, addicted or needed to escape from reality. Almost 40% used their winnings to gamble again.

Among those surveyed, sports betting was the most-often-placed bet, with an average incidence of 12 times a month.