BERLIN (AP) – A man who has a gambling addiction landed him in prison in search of red has now taken over into the German sports betting industry.
Thomas Melchior does it by placing himself in the mercy of home fans by holding the sign that he “lost a bet” before a football match and getting attention wearing a rival jersey he hates.
He wore a Hersa Berlin shirt for the Union Berlin match on Sunday, and a hamburger SV shirt for the 1860 Munich Jersey at the Bayern Munich match on Saturday and at the Crosstown rival St. Pauli on Friday. He previously wore Schalke’s top in the Borussia Dortmund match and Bayern jersey in the 1860 match. He has more games to join next weekend.
Sheep in wolf clothes
“Yes, it’s dangerous. I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone,” Melchior told The Associated Press before announcing his hidden Elsa jersey to allied fans.
The sign says he lost his bet, but Meltior lost more. Former bank teller Meltior was sentenced to five and a half years in 2019 for fraud and theft crimes against strangers and people he knew after losing more than 800,000 euros ($937,000 today) in gambling. He lost his job, friends and family and felt totally alone. He thought about ending his life.
Now he is working to correct his mistakes and pay off his debts.
“When the handcuffs were clicked, it was the first moment when I felt free again from my first bet, when I felt like I had survived my gambling addiction,” Melchior said. “At that moment I decided to try and fix all the damages, and I warned people by letting them know about gambling addiction because I wanted to get out of prison in the best possible circumstances. So I’m here today.”
Melchior, he quickly built up a big following Tiktok and Instagramreceived almost positive reactions from fans on Sunday. His message has already reached many people through social media, with some fans halting for selfies, but others expressed surprise and entertainment.
“Poor grass!” Several fans continued walking and laughed. Others stopped to hear Melchior’s story and his advice to “steer your fingers away from sports betting.” Some people covered his sign with his shirt and stickers.
Player Union Federation is slam
Coincidentally, last week, the German Football Players Union (VDV) called on the German Football Federation (DFB) to stop accepting sponsorship funds from sports betting providers and to do more to prevent gambling addiction.
“It is unacceptable for DFB to declare “effective anti-reliance prevention” as one of the legislative goals, but at the same time it sells an exorbitant amount of advertising space to sports betting providers.”
The competitions organized by the DFB, including the German Cup, are sponsored by international sports betting providers. The third division team has a logo on the sleeves of their arms. Another sports betting provider previously sponsored the department.
Franz accused the DFB of “damages football’s reputation and enriching themselves at the expense of gambling addictions and their families.”
But many Bundesliga and second division clubs, including Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund and Bayer Lebakusen, are also promoting their jerseys showing that they are profitable and that they are also showing their profits in their jerseys. Sports betting providers also dominate TV ad slots.
“Overall advertising is already causing children and young people,” Franz said.
DFB has been asked to comment.
Travel Planning
Melchior told the Associated Press that he became addicted after his first bet on a Champions League match.
“I saw the ads for betting providers, but I didn’t think of anything wrong about it because it was on TV. I couldn’t imagine it was a problem in any way. That was the beginning of my journey, and 13 years later, I was arrested,” Melchior said.
Meltior also wants to bring his campaign abroad. However, his criminal history has thwarted plans to attend the Manchester Derby, where he wanted to wear a Manchester United jersey earlier this month.
“Gambling addiction is not (just) a national, purely a German issue. Gambling addiction is a global issue, so I’m going to another country,” Melchiole said. “Because of my criminal history, I cannot obtain such a visa. I need to apply for it at the embassy. It will take a little time. But if that works out, we will soon see each other in the UK.”
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