The Michigan Gaming Control Board (MGCB) has broadened the scope of its accountable playing outreach by opening participation in its “Don’t Regret the Bet” marketing campaign to highschool sports activities booster golf equipment throughout the state. The initiative seeks to attach native faculty communities with accountable gaming schooling whereas providing monetary assist to athletic packages.
The program permits eligible booster organizations to show accountable playing messages tied to the marketing campaign at sporting occasions and thru group outreach channels. In return, collaborating teams could earn as much as $4,000 by selling the supplies and serving to elevate consciousness about the dangers related to playing.
State officers say the expanded effort addresses the rising visibility of betting promotions in sports-related environments, notably as sports wagering turns into extra extensively mentioned and marketed throughout media and digital platforms.
Partnership With School Communities
The program invitations school-affiliated nonprofit booster organizations to distribute messaging related to the “Don’t Regret the Bet” marketing campaign in varied areas linked to athletic actions. These placements can embrace printed supplies at video games, digital posts on social media platforms, or messaging included in newsletters and occasion packages.
Participating teams can also show marketing campaign graphics on stadium scoreboards or in school sporting venues. The MGCB has ready promoting supplies and program tips to assist golf equipment implement the messaging inside their current actions.
The regulator views booster organizations as trusted group teams that preserve sturdy relationships with college students and households. Officials say this connection positions them effectively to introduce accountable gaming conversations inside faculty environments.
Henry Williams, govt director of the MGCB, defined the significance of group involvement in the program.
“Responsible gaming education isn’t just good practice — it’s critical for protecting Michigan’s youth in an era where betting content is everywhere,” Williams mentioned. “Booster clubs are deeply trusted in their communities, making them ideal partners to reinforce positive behaviors while generating funds for their programs.”
The initiative requires booster golf equipment to submit an software and make sure that they may show marketing campaign supplies that meet the regulator’s tips. Only school-affiliated organizations with nonprofit standing qualify for participation.
Research Highlights Youth Exposure to Gambling Ads
The expanded marketing campaign arrives at a time when regulators and researchers proceed to look at how playing advertising reaches youthful audiences. Studies referenced by the MGCB counsel that youngsters incessantly encounter sports activities betting promotions throughout a number of media channels, together with televised sports activities occasions and social platforms.
One research performed by the University of Michigan C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital discovered that considerations about youth playing are already current amongst many households. According to that analysis, one in six dad and mom of youngsters believes their little one may very well be growing a playing drawback.
Regulators additionally pointed to findings displaying that adolescents typically recall a number of betting commercials every week. Awareness of accountable playing sources, nonetheless, seems considerably decrease.
These patterns have raised considerations that repeated publicity to sports activities betting promotions could enhance curiosity in playing amongst younger audiences and contribute to the normalization of wagering actions.
The MGCB’s program goals to introduce accountable gaming messages in environments the place college students and households already collect, reminiscent of faculty sporting occasions. Officials say this method permits instructional messaging to achieve communities in a well-recognized setting.
Supporting Athletic Programs While Promoting Awareness
Beyond its instructional objectives, the marketing campaign additionally gives monetary assist for native athletic packages. Booster golf equipment that take part in the initiative could obtain funding of as much as $4,000 relying on their involvement and outreach actions.
The MGCB designed the program to permit golf equipment to combine marketing campaign messaging into actions they already manage, together with fundraising occasions and sports activities competitions. Officials say the construction permits colleges to profit financially whereas serving to ship details about playing dangers.
Advertising placements can embrace posters, digital graphics, social media posts, printed packages, or scoreboard shows. Clubs can also incorporate marketing campaign messaging into e mail newsletters and group outreach initiatives related to athletics.
Officials say the program displays a broader effort to stability the presence of playing promotions with instructional messaging designed to encourage accountable habits.
The marketing campaign itself has already gained nationwide recognition. In 2025, the “Don’t Regret the Bet” initiative was named a finalist in two classes at the PRNEWS Platinum Awards, which acknowledge achievements in public relations and communications.
As published on the MGCB’s website, functions for booster membership participation at the moment are open and shall be reviewed on a rolling foundation. State regulators say the expanded program permits colleges to strengthen athletic packages whereas contributing to broader efforts geared toward elevating consciousness about accountable playing.
