Strictly star Paul Merson's rollercoaster marriage with third wife who gives him weekly allowance

Arsenal fable Paul Merson suffers from a gambling addiction, which heavy affected his archetypal 2 marriages and has threatened the Strictly star's existent matrimony too

Former footballer turned Strictly star Paul Merson has battled with a gambling addiction for decades.

The world TV amusement contestant is an Arsenal fable turned campaigner for reforming the gambling industry. He claims his addiction outgo him a staggering £7 cardinal implicit the past 30 years.

Now blocked from each betting companies, his six-figure Strictly wages, similar each his earnings, volition reportedly spell consecutive to his 3rd woman Kate. Paul placed his archetypal stake aged conscionable 16, which saw him spiralling into betting and cocaine addictions, which destroyed his archetypal 2 marriages.

He was archetypal with his puerility sweetheart Lorraine Costin for a decennary with 3 sons together, Charlie, Ben and Sam. The 56-year-old aboriginal wed Louise Bache, with duplicate daughters and is present joined to Kate, with 3 children together. And his gambling addiction volition ever beryllium contiguous - arsenic a caller relapse saw the prima stake connected array tennis during the pandemic, blowing £160,000 which was meant for a location deposit.

The ex-pro had been furloughed from his occupation arsenic a pundit connected Sky Sports' Soccer Saturday and portion helium initially enjoyed spending clip with Kate and their children, anxiousness astir his vocation kicked in. "I thought: 'They're not going to person Soccer Saturday immoderate more'," helium told the Sun.

"I was thinking: 'I'm not going to beryllium capable to gain anything'. My older kids' mums person houses and I privation to springiness my younger kids a future. Kate and I had £160,000 saved up and I blew it successful a fewer bets. It was each online, but it wasn't a bookmaker, it was a backstage bookie."

Speaking astir his allowance to The Sun, Merson concluded: "I was resentful astatine first, like, ‘How situation you? I’m implicit 50 years of age’. I’m much than blessed now. When I stopped drinking I took each the portion retired of the house. Why not with gambling?"

Paul believes gambling companies request to instrumentality much accountability. "You cognize erstwhile someone's not having amusive - 90 bets a day, 60 bets a day, 15 deposits a day," helium said. "The limits request to beryllium acceptable for these people, due to the fact that they won't acceptable a bounds themselves. The lone clip they're ever going to halt is erstwhile everything is gone."

The committed prima attends Gamblers Anonymous and has backstage therapy to support his beingness connected track. His addiction volition ever beryllium with him and helium told vigor presumption talkSPORT helium had wanted to interruption his ain fingers to halt him placing a bet

"The addiction is truthful overwhelming, it's scary what it does," helium said. "If you enactment your manus successful a occurrence and went to bash it again your encephalon would archer you 'don't bash that again.' With addictions the encephalon doesn't archer you that."

For enactment dealing with gambling problems, you tin sojourn online resources specified arsenic Gamcare, Gambling Therapy, Gamban and GambleAware.