Jackpot: How Gambling Conquered Britain

A striking expose of the insidious business practices that have generated enormous profits for the companies operating within the UK’s gambling industry.

‘A methodical, sensitive and occasionally harrowing polemic about the gambling industry … The book has echoes of Patrick Radden Keefe’s award-winning Empire of Pain.’ SUNDAY TIMES

‘A serious attempt to grapple with the extent of Britain’s problem.’ THE SPECTATOR

‘Persuasive.’ FINANCIAL TIMES ‘Fascinating.’ IRISH TIMES ‘Eye-opening.’ TELEGRAPH

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716: the number of gambling logos displayed in a single Premier League football match

GBP421 MILLION: the salary of Bet365’s CEO in 2020.

GBP14 BILLION: the annual losses incurred by British gamblers.

Over half of the population gambles in the UK every year. How did we get here? What keeps us hooked when the odds are so heavily stacked against us? And who are the real winners and losers?

Jackpot dives deep into gambling’s seedy underbelly to answer these questions, and many more. From the first National Lottery draw in 1569 to the Wild West of today’s online casinos, Guardian reporter Rob Davies follows the money to show who profits - and at what cost.