This weekend, more than 60 people harmed by gambling – including families who have lost people to gambling-related suicide – will walk from Manchester to Liverpool via the cities’ famous football clubs to demand gambling reform.

The walk has been organised in memory of Ryan Myers from Liverpool who was 27 when he took his life in 2014 after becoming addicted to gambling.

Ryan loved sport and was a talented golfer. As a child, his dad would drop him off at the golf club during the summer, where he’d play all day. At his peak, Ryan played off a handicap of three. Liverpool Football Club was Ryan’s other great sporting love. He also enjoyed playing pool, darts, and rugby league. 

In the months before he died, Ryan had tried to find help. He emailed one of the companies he was betting with and asked to be self-excluded. He’d also made contact with a recovering gambling addict he encountered on YouTube and told him that he’d been trying to stop gambling, but he said that the sheer volume of advertisements and promotions he encountered daily were making it almost impossible. 

Ryan’s parents, Alison and John Myers, will be joined on the walk by several other bereaved families, along with recovering gambling addicts, campaigners, affected others, MPs, and representatives from local authorities. 

We’ll be calling at four Premier League clubs – Manchester City, Manchester United, Everton, and Liverpool – demanding an end to all gambling advertising in football. All four clubs currently have a gambling sponsor or partner. 

If you’d like to meet us at any of the four football grounds (timings below), please get in touch with our Emily, our events manager, at [email protected]

Timings

Friday July 8th:

Manchester City FC, Etihad Stadium – 6.30am

Manchester United FC, Old Trafford – 9.20am

Saturday July 9th:

Everton FC, Goodison Park – 3.30pm

Liverpool FC, Anfield – 4.20pm

Support us

If you haven’t already please do sign our petition to kick all gambling adverts out of football, and Ben Melvin’s petition calling on Everton to end their partnership with Stake.

If you’re able to, please consider donating via our GoFundMe page. All donations will go toward covering the costs of the campaign.

Thank you.