Melbourne football club probed over deal with crypto casino mogul

Melbourne Victory, which is partly owned by Miami-based private equity group 777 Partners, joined the Victorian Responsible Gambling Foundation’s “love the game, not the odds” campaign in 2019. It pledged not to partner with gambling brands in a video that warned of the dangers of exposing children to gambling.

“The first generation of kids to grow up with gambling advertising is now the largest group of sports betters in Victoria,” a club player says in the video.

The soccer club has defended its move to sign Kick as its “e-sports” partner, claiming it is not in breach of its commitment to the Victorian Responsible Gambling Foundation.

“Melbourne Victory ... ensures all commercial partnerships meet the requirements of our current partnership guidelines which we constantly review,” a spokesman said.

Alliance for Gambling Reform chief executive Carol Bennett said the move to sign the deal with Kick was “extraordinary”.

“Shame on Melbourne Victory for taking that approach, maybe they should consider their fans and future fans,” she said. “They have chosen the money over the wishes of their fans.”

Mr Craven was third on The Australian Financial Review’s Young Rich List with estimated wealth of $3.11 billion, a 186 per cent change on the year before on the back of strong profits from his online casino Stake.com.

Kick asks users to confirm they are above the age of 18 when viewing certain content, including gambling. “Kick has strong trust and safety controls to protect users from inappropriate content, including preventing children from accessing gambling content,” the company said in response to questions from the Financial Review. “Gambling is only one of many categories of content on Kick, and is very far from the most prominent ... categories in Australia.”

‘Roping kids into gambling’

Kick, which regularly promotes Stake.com, has tried to boost popularity by partnering with the Alfa Romeo F1 Team and Everton Football Club, in which 777 also has a stake.

Elizabeth Handsley, the president of Australia’s peak body on children’s use of digital media, Children and Media Australia, said taking the sponsorship was “inconsistent” with Melbourne Victory’s commitment not to work with gambling companies.

Alliance for Gambling Reform’s Ms Bennett said she believed the site normalised gambling to children.

“These sites are roping their kids into gambling. It is really disappointing for those fans and parents among them that know their kids are the target,” she said. “Already we know 50 per cent of 10-year-olds already have access to some form of gambling.”

Melbourne Victory managing director Caroline Carnegie previously told ESPN the club’s finances were “not where we want it to be”. In January, Football Australia slapped the club with a record fine after a violent pitch invasion in an A-League match against Melbourne City last December.

PE group 777 bought its stake in Melbourne Victory after the club suffered a $6.7 million loss in its 2021-22 accounts. 

Kick was approached for comment.