Óscar’s euphoria after Spain’s World Cup win resembled other bursts of joy: ecstasy, the national team shirt and arms raised for a collective triumph. But it was also an intimate celebration, because this time he didn’t have any betting slips crumpled in his hands. “This is the first World Cup I’ve watched without betting; during Qatar it was really bad and I can’t even calculate how deep in debt I got — I bet on every match,” he says. He is 25 and describes himself as “a gambler in advanced rehabilitation, although I’ll be a gambler forever.” Agustín, 37, had to watch it in a safe environment, at home with his girlfriend. He has been in therapy for nine months for sports-betting addiction, but has been gambling for almost a decade. He has no access to money or cards. “I didn’t even consider going to a bar to watch it, because now there are machines there that let you bet and no one asks for ID,” he says. At 39, Carlos calls himself a “rehabilitated gambler” and takes detours on the street to avoid passing betting shops. If someone saw Sergio, 37, enjoying the final at home with his son, they would notice nothing unusual. He is blind and, listening to the match, feared it would go to penalties because that could recreate the adrenaline rush he gets from betting. He hasn’t bet since March, his phone app reminds him.
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