An increase in the number of young people gambling has been recorded in the European Drug Report 2020 presented on Tuesday by the Cyprus National Addictions Authority (NAAC).
A significant increase is recorded in the research base in relation to betting and the student population.
While the average for online betting in 2019 is 16%, in Cyprus it skyrocketed to 22%, and the average for offline betting is 18% skyrocketing to 27% in Cyprus.
The lion’s share in student betting is taken up by Joker, Lotto and Kino with 16.6%, while 13.9% stated they bet on football matches.
Additionally, 10.1% stated that they played card games and dice and 4.5% engaged in playing slot machines.
Chrysanthos Georgiou, director of the NAAC, says he recently promoted the idea of a new unified Strategy, which will include dealing with the pathological engagement in gambling, among other issues, and will cover the period of 2021-2028.
After the final commitment of all involved parties is received, the Strategy will be submitted to the Council of Ministers for approval.
