FAIR director calls for new prevention culture in Italian gambling debate

Stefano De Vita, director general of Fondazione FAIR, called for Italy's gambling debate to move past entrenched positions and to build a shared prevention agenda, in remarks. De Vita said both those who treat gambling as a legitimate, regulated entertainment activity and those who emphasise its social, health and individual risks hold elements of truth.

De Vita wrote that the problem arises when the exchange becomes a standoff in which each side defends its position without recognising the other's arguments. He said the aim is not to change the views of supporters or opponents of gambling, but to recognise that protecting people should be common ground for a different kind of discussion. He pointed to the debate that followed new guidelines on communication as an example of how far apart positions are, with some questioning the concept of "responsible gambling" itself.

On the other side, De Vita said, some stress that a legal, regulated, traceable system subject to controls is essential not only for the sector but also for player protection, combating illegality and protecting minors. He cited ADM's framing at the Stati Generali del 2026, which linked the rules of legal gambling to action against illegal gambling and the prevention of underage gambling. De Vita said neither reading can simply be ignored, and that the risk of the standoff is continued argument over which representation is correct instead of asking which elements of each can improve prevention.

De Vita said much attention in recent years has rightly gone to rules, limits, bans, controls, protection tools and operator responsibility, but that prevention cannot stop at regulation and must become knowledge, awareness and behaviour. He asked how much of the debate has reached the public, and said the illegal market does not wait while institutions, researchers, operators and associations argue over the rules of legal gambling, operating online and through social networks, testimonials and communities. He noted that ADM maintains and updates a system blocking unauthorised gambling sites, and that AGCOM has acted on gambling content on Facebook and on videos by content creators promoting money-win gambling sites, while new influencer rules explicitly include protecting minors and users among their objectives.

Citing a survey by Università Cattolica for Fondazione FAIR, De Vita said 22% of respondents reported starting to gamble before the age of 18 and 5% before 14, while 69% said they did so between the ages of 18 and 20 as a way of feeling adult. He said young people live in an ecosystem where social media, gaming, the creator economy, digital entertainment, finance and betting can appear increasingly close and overlapping.

De Vita called for a common table on prevention, not to establish who is right about gambling but as a space where institutions, regulatory authorities, the scientific community, health professionals, associations and the third sector, operators, and communication and education experts can discuss openly. He said preventing problem gambling, protecting minors and combating illegality should be shared objectives rather than belonging to either side, and called for a prevention pact based on verifiable objectives rather than statements of principle. He said Fondazione FAIR commits itself to bringing institutions, authorities, the scientific community, the health sector, associations, civil society and operators to the same table, starting from the question of what can be done together to protect people better.

De Vita said operators should listen to the arguments of those opposed to gambling, and opponents should listen to operators' proposals without prejudice. He said overcoming the standoff does not mean giving up one's ideas, but recognising that, on prevention at least, dialogue is itself a form of protection.