AMLÉ Gambling Survey: Initial Findings

by | Mar 9, 2026 | Research

We have been working to analyse the data on student gambling from our recent study, and we would like to share some of the initial findings – a report on these can be found here: https://mentalhealth.amle.ie/amle-research/

Overall a majority (61%) of students have gambled before. Mostly, students gambled using apps or other online methods, and they mostly bet on the lottery or sports. An overwhelming majority (84%) gamble only occasionally.

That might paint a picture that gambling is not an issue for students, and for the majority of participants in this survey, that was true. However, there were some concerning findings about the amount of participants engaging in problematic gambling behaviours:

  • 14% said they bet more than they can afford at least sometimes
  • 12% said they need to gamble larger amounts to feel the same level of excitement at least sometimes
  • 21% said they go back to try and win their losses back at least sometimes, and
  • 4% said they have borrowed or sold something to get money for gambling

Again an overwhelming majority (88%) of participants have never thought that they might have a gambling problem, but at the same time, 21% told us that have feel guilty about their gambling at least sometimes. With low levels of participants feeling that they might have a problem, it is no surprise that very low levels of them (less than 1%) have ever sought help.

What is concerning is that 42% of participants said that they would not know where to get help if they or a friend needed it for gambling problems. Almost half of all participants (49%) feel that gambling is an issue among students.

Overall, while gambling does not appear to be an endemic issue in the student population, there is a cohort who feel they don’t have a problem with gambling while at the same time engaging in problematic gambling behaviours. There is a need to better educate the student population about the point at which gambling does become problematic, and there is a strong need to signpost more to sources of support in this area for the student population.

Notes:

This study was funded by the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland, and was conducted in partnership with Dr Elaine Murray in Ulster University. The study is not nationally representative due to sample size.