Tony O’Reilly was 24 when he made his first bet, placing £1 on a World Cup quarter final in July 1998.
But what began as a bit of fun, spun out of control, resulting in him stealing €1.75 million from his employer An Post to fuel his gambling addiction over a 10 year period.
“I placed a £1 bet that Patrick Kluivert would score first. And he did. And that buzz was something I had never felt before. It was something completely different,” said Mr O’Reilly.
“Down we went and collected our money, we [he and his friend] got £46 each. Probably in today’s time, it would be equivalent to putting on a fiver and winning €200.”
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The pair went out that night, telling everyone about their winnings. “I was walking around with my chest out and everyone kept saying, ‘Jesus man, you must be really, really good at this’.
“For someone who was very anxious ... I think I got as addicted as much to that affirmation as I did to the money that came with it,” said Mr O’Reilly, who was speaking at the 35th annual research conference held on Tuesday by St John of God Research Foundation, which highlighted concerns around behavioural addiction among the Irish public.
For five years, he said he gambled regularly. But things began to get out of control in 2003. He got a betting voucher as a present, but to use it he was required to set up an online account.
Once the voucher was spent, he started using a credit card to top up his account. He quickly went from placing cheap bets to betting up to €100 at a time. Money that was supposed to be put towards the final balance for his wedding, he covertly gambled away, without anyone knowing.
“Gambling for me was a way to earn more money and make me feel better about myself. I didn’t see that I was addicted, I was convinced I’d get that big win back. I thought I could gamble my way out of the problem.”
But then he started stealing money from his job. He’d take bags of €2 coins and replace them with smaller coins. He took money out of a bundle of notes with a pliers, and altered accountable receipts. His bets became larger and more unusual, his biggest being €40,000 on a Norwegian women’s soccer team.
By the time his theft had been identified, he had stolen €1.75 million. In late 2012, he was sentenced to four years in jail with one year suspended.
He underwent treatment for gambling addiction and then decided he wanted to help people who were struggling in the same way he had been.
It is more than 14 years since Mr O’Reilly’s last bet. He regularly visits schools to give educational talks, he has released a memoir as a cautionary tale around the dangers of gambling and is now a registered counsellor.
“I’m back to myself now. It’s a real full circle moment.”
