Hooked at age 11
When Malek decided to share his story, he initially focused on high schoolers — but he’s now increasingly booked for middle schools.
Kurt Freudenberg was just 11 when he started gambling, trading valuable “skins” — cosmetic upgrades used in video games — for digital currency he could use to bet on gambling sites. Within weeks, the sixth grader was betting thousands of dollars a day on online blackjack and roulette.
“It felt like a high, an extreme rush,” said Freudenberg, who is now 23. “I would play soccer and score a goal or get an A on a test — nothing compared to that high on gambling.”
By high school, Freudenberg expanded into sports betting on NBA and NFL games and offshore casinos that only…