Coverage of the Brownlows is slammed over a tiny detail

Footy fans have slammed coverage of the 2022 AFL Brownlow Medal as ‘disgraceful’ and ‘inappropriate for children’ due to the overwhelming number of gambling advertisements played throughout the broadcast.

The Brownlow Medal count, held on Sunday night at the Crown Casino in Melbourne, was broadcast live on Channel Seven.

Carlton’s Patrick Cripps won the prestigious medal on 29 votes, beating last year’s winner, Brisbane Lions midfielder Lachie Neale, by a single vote.

But many of the viewers said the vote count was soured during the broadcast because of an oversaturation of betting ads from Sportsbet.

The Brownlow Medal count was broadcast live on Channel 7. It was held at the Crown Casino in Melbourne (pictured, Richmond Tigers player Daniel Rioli with partner Paris Lawrence)

Channel Seven ran ads and segments from the betting company featuring different betting odds for players for every single round.

Viewers took to social media to vent their frustrations about the constant ads and gambling promotions while children watched.

‘Hey @AFL, do you think we could have one event like the #Brownlow without the gambling money?’ wrote one Twitter user.

‘Just one night, you smash us during the season with this rubbish every week. You are making it impossible for kids to watch.’

Another user commented, ‘The disgusting hypocrisy of @AFL which permits #gambling advertising on #Brownlow when every kid in the country is watching.’

‘It is normalising gambling which for most people is a losing option and for many people, devastating.’

Carlton’s Patrick Cripps (pictured) won the prestigious medal on 29 votes, beating Brisbane’s Lachie Neale by a single vote

The votes, the glamour and the spectacle on the night appeared to have been soured by the oversaturation of gambling ads from Sportsbet (pictured, former Kangaroo’s coach and player Dani Laidley with partner Donna Leckie)

Former Bulldogs player Nathan Brown presented the Sportsbet odds for different players throughout the coverage

‘Disgusting by the @AFL to have gambling advertising saturating every part of the game,’ added a third.

‘The Brownlows interrupted all night with betting odds, betting adds during the final all game – even during Auskick. It’s time to get gambling out of sport.’

‘100% Gambling ruins lives,’ said a footy fan on Twitter. ‘Promoting gambling CONSTANTLY during AFL games, and events is so concerning.’

‘I hear students at my workplace talk in gambling terms. That’s bloody concerning. This needs to stop. Gambling ruins lives, trust me.’

Even media figures and politicians shared their concerns over the number of gambling ads during the medal count.

Independent MP Zoe Daniel shared a screenshot of a Sportsbet gambling segue and wrote: ‘The association with sports events and encouragement to gamble must stop. This is normalising gambling for our kids. Do we want this?’

Sportsbet advertisements played during the breaks of the medal count (pictured, Sportsbet ad)

Sportsbet is the official ‘gambling partner’ of the AFL. It came after Sportsbet took over Beteasy in 2020 (pictured, Sportsbet ad)

The AFL became associated with Sportsbet after former CEO Andrew Demetriou signed a $10million-per-year ‘gambling sponsor’ contract with Crownbet.

Mr Demetriou was on the board of both Crownbet and its major shareholder, Crown Resorts.

Crownbet became the major gambling sponsor for the AFL. It was re-branded as BetEasy in 2018 and then taken over by Sportsbet in 2020.

Sportsbet claimed 50 per cent of Australia’s sports betting market share in 2021 and has an average of 1 million monthly gamblers.

Sportsbet is owned by Irish-based Flutter Entertainment, one of the world’s biggest betting companies.