this post was submitted on 20 Aug 2026
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Today I Learned

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[–] BarneyPiccolo@lemmy.today 19 points 15 hours ago (1 children)

It's all part of getting every last penny out of us before we die. If you've still got some disposable income left after paying rent and student loans, then here's a fun way to throw it away!

Lately I've been seeing Matthew Broderick advertising a new gambling app with Candy Crush type games, instead of sports or Vegas style games, so it will be much more attractive to people who already play games on their phones. Worse, they are aiming at middle-aged women, but not just any middle-aged women, they are looking for those who are unfulfilled in life.

I've seen three different commercials, and all of them feature a woman whose family is ignoring her, and making her feel bad. Then Ferris Beuhler sidles up with this fun new game, and now she's getting fat hits of dopamine, and she's happy.

Many women handle the household finances, and in a couple of years, we're going to see stories of Moms who lost the family home, gambling on her phone.

[–] lechekaflan@lemmy.world 6 points 15 hours ago (3 children)

Lately I’ve been seeing Matthew Broderick advertising a new gambling app with Candy Crush type games, instead of sports or Vegas style games

It can only mean he has money problems.

[–] radiofreebc@lemmy.world 2 points 4 hours ago

Maybe he hit someone else with his car

[–] Buffalobuffalo@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 10 hours ago

Just fulfilling his fiduciary duty to his family, scummily.

[–] Madzielle@lemmy.dbzer0.com 6 points 15 hours ago* (last edited 15 hours ago) (1 children)

That in no way excuses being a shill

[–] lechekaflan@lemmy.world 4 points 14 hours ago

Either way a has-been find themselves clawing up the wall.

[–] TankovayaDiviziya@lemmy.world 8 points 17 hours ago* (last edited 13 hours ago) (1 children)

Does the stock market count as gambling? 😂

Michael Burry invested more on gambling stocks and now I can see why.

[–] SippyCup@lemmy.world 5 points 13 hours ago

For this article? No. For people with retirement accounts? Arguably no.

For people trading daily with an app on their phone? Yes.

[–] abcdqfr@lemmy.world 8 points 19 hours ago (1 children)

I wonder what this figure is like not including the whales throwing around six figure paychecks. hard to spend 10k on a single book or movie ticket or song, ya know...

[–] Nautalax@lemmy.world 5 points 12 hours ago

Apparently a lot of people (particularly younger generations) are increasingly getting hooked on gambling and are even psy-op’d enough to consider it as a part of their retirement strategy

[–] Etterra@discuss.online 31 points 1 day ago (1 children)

It's a tax on people who can't do math.

[–] creamfresh@lemmy.world 15 points 18 hours ago (2 children)

Gambling addiction is an illness.

[–] daniskarma@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 points 4 hours ago* (last edited 4 hours ago)

So is measles.

One you can prevent taking a vaccine. Other you can prevent not starting gambling.

[–] lemmy_outta_here@lemmy.world 1 points 16 hours ago (2 children)

But you don't get addicted if you don't try it. The house always wins or there would be no gambling establishments. Tax on people who can't do math.

[–] creamfresh@lemmy.world 4 points 12 hours ago* (last edited 12 hours ago) (1 children)

But you don’t get addicted if you don’t try it.

Finally, addiction has terrorised societies for millenia, but this brave user has solved it!

[–] lemmy_outta_here@lemmy.world -1 points 11 hours ago (1 children)

Yep, that’s how i avoided heroin addiction too

[–] thallamabond@lemmy.world 2 points 11 hours ago (1 children)

Everyone I've known to get addicted to heroin started with simple painkillers, after the prescription was gone they went Black market, this led to stronger and stronger pills until the pills just didn't do it anymore. Is somebody who was prescribed 40 mg Percocet per day for more than 2 months I can tell you, it's fucking hard to stop.

[–] lemmy_outta_here@lemmy.world 2 points 2 hours ago

You are right. I didn't mean to be cavalier about heroin addiction - I was just being a smart-ass.

In fact, I don't mean to be cavalier about gambling addiction either.

Here is what I really mean to say: when you learn about gambling through a mathematical perspective first (as I did), it NEVER seems appealing. All casino games are rigged so that the house wins most of the time. Sports betting is similarly biased to ensure that the only participant who routinely profits is the bookie/betting parlour. For me, knowing this takes the fun out of it. It's like reading the last chapter of a mystery novel first, then trying to slog through the book anyway. And what a spoiler: in the end, you're gonna lose.

[–] skidicarus@sh.itjust.works 6 points 15 hours ago (1 children)

Part of the problem is just how available it is. One doesn't have to make a pilgrimage to a casino anymore. Just download an app. It's advertised as a fun game to play rather than a highly addictive and crippling behavior.

[–] lemmy_outta_here@lemmy.world 1 points 11 hours ago

Agreed. Gambling was almost totally illegal in canada until the government decided they wanted a slice (and a thin slice at that). now it is everywhere and problem gambling is exploding

[–] THE_GR8_MIKE@lemmy.world 42 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (1 children)

Happy to say I contributed zero to that, but jesus fuck regardless.

[–] dan1101@lemmy.world 2 points 14 hours ago

Yeah I've never even bought a lottery ticket, no interest whatsoever.

[–] fluckx@lemmy.world 12 points 23 hours ago (1 children)

Not entirely surprised, but surprised it is that high.

When I went there 10 years ago I met people in Vegas who go there every year as their main holiday with a few thousand euro budget to gamble.

[–] glimse@lemmy.world 8 points 14 hours ago (1 children)

I'm not pro-gambling but I think Vegas vacations are valid - they're special occasions where you get a thrill for your money. What's the difference between a $2000 cruise and a $2000 weekend in Vegas? Both are a waste to me but I see the appeal.

But this is different...it's very much NOT about Vegas (which is struggling), it's the apps. "Sports betting" aka gambling was legalized in 2018.

DraftKings and the rest have been fighting regulations since like...2012? And they won. Which is why there's gambling ads everywhere with very little regulation. It's why polymarket and kalshi exist.

Regulate these internet gambling companies back to the 2000s and the problem mostly goes away.

[–] fluckx@lemmy.world 1 points 10 hours ago (1 children)

While I wholeheartedly agree with your statement about the app/site/sports betting, I don't wholly agree with the travelling comparison.

Travelling and visiting places tend to open your horizons and enrich you culturally. It's not easily generalized. Travelling to Disneyland probably won't really broaden your horizons or teach you something culturally and neither will idly sitting on a cruise ship.

You are correct that the article is more about sports betting rather than casinos like in vegas. I merely meant that given what I experienced there, I'm not surprised the gambling in apps and sports is getting out of control. That's on me though :)

Maybe I am against things like the Vegas vacations because I have such a large distaste for gambling in general. ( Loot box 'surprise' mechanics also do not help ).

[–] glimse@lemmy.world 1 points 9 hours ago* (last edited 9 hours ago)

I used cruises as an example because I don't really consider that "traveling" for the most part. You're on a floating box shuffling between touristy ports.

Very much not my idea of a good trip but some people LOVE that. I'd rather spend a week somewhere to soak it all in

[–] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 53 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Okay, yeah sure. That looks bad. But how much did those Americans win back?

[–] radix@lemmy.world 54 points 1 day ago (11 children)

Handle is gross throughput, not consumer expenditure: over 90% of what is wagered gets returned to bettors in the form of winnings. That $1,000 in bets translates to roughly $100 in average losses per adult.

The market is big, but less than the more clickbaity headline would suggest.

[–] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 29 points 1 day ago (3 children)

over 90% of what is wagered gets returned to bettors in the form of winnings

As someone who has gambled once or twice, this seems like a wild overestimate.

[–] TeamAssimilation@infosec.pub 20 points 1 day ago

They didn’t say it returned to the same individual. Some people get the ocasional win and stop, others keep gambling the winnings until they lose it all.

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[–] starik@lemmy.today 8 points 23 hours ago (1 children)

How much did the museum industry spend on gambling?

[–] kilgore_trout@feddit.it 5 points 22 hours ago

Less than Americans did.

[–] Mulligrubs@lemmy.world 21 points 1 day ago (3 children)

This is a bit misleading in my opinion... 90% of the money is returned to the bettors per article.

Which is actually more than I expected and a pleasant surprise to me. I'm glad the USA is no longer imprisoning/fining gamblers, it's a sin. Haha get it

[–] Delphia@lemmy.world 9 points 20 hours ago (2 children)

Its also really not as insane as it sounds because it will also include all the state lotteries.

166 billion divided by roughly 300 million Americans puts it at about $500 a year. So if you buy a $10 ticket every week you are hitting the national average.

[–] HerbGrower@slrpnk.net 2 points 15 hours ago

500 a year on gambling is quite a lot. Though also not a crippling amount. If you really enjoy it then whatever, go throw away your money.

I spend money on arguably stupid things too. Got 5 games on GOG for £55 the other day.

[–] 50MYT@lemmy.world 3 points 17 hours ago (1 children)

The insane amount, is that per capita, America is only second.

The graph of all countries average spending per capita on gambling is nice and straight, with America second at about $450 per capita. Then it jumps to the no.1, who spends $2400 per capita on gambling.

Australia

[–] HerbGrower@slrpnk.net 3 points 15 hours ago

That does surprise me, I thought it would be one of those tiny tax haven countries.

[–] Dnb@lemmy.dbzer0.com 8 points 1 day ago

Well losers lose and the winners win, with the house taking a cut from the middle.

Insane but unsurprising with how bad betting advertising is and prediction market scams.

[–] someguy3@lemmy.world 10 points 1 day ago

House takes 10%.

[–] Star@lemmy.blahaj.zone 3 points 19 hours ago

Woof, that's depressing

[–] Jhex@lemmy.world 21 points 1 day ago (1 children)

with the intellectual level they have displayed in the last few years, this is no surprise

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[–] ZoteTheMighty@lemmy.zip 5 points 23 hours ago

"So you should buy me more books"

-- my wife

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