Australia – gambling capital of the world

Like so many in Australia, Sam grew up in a community where having a punt was synonymous with sport.

“Our friends, our family would ask ‘Oh who are you betting on this week?’ That was the normal conversation that occurred,” his sister Amy – who is not using her real name – says.

Looking back, she blames that normalisation of gambling – the way it crept into their home and baked itself into social interactions – for her brother’s addiction, and for the suffering he endured before taking his life.

“It just destroyed him physically and emotionally,” she explains. “We tried everything. We were…