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A friend cannot wait to see the conclusion of the English Premier League sometime next month, and it all has to do with his wife and betting. Madam, an ardent Manchester United fan, is addicted to both football and betting, that she never misses to watch any of the club’s matches, placing her bets on Man U, even when it is apparent it is facing a tough team like Watford and would lose.
Well, that is not the big issue because Man U are perennial losers, anyway. His problem is that his wife’s addiction to football and sports betting is hurting him where it matters most – in the bedroom.
It all started over a year ago when he introduced her to sports betting. Before then, the Madam was just a football fanatic who would, most of the time, listen the matches on radio, following the yapping of those presenters who promise too much only to realise the ball is still at the centre of the pitch.
But enter betting, which he introduced to her so that she can turn her passion into a money-making scheme, and all went haywire. Now instead of listening to the matches on radio as she looks after their two children and makes a delicacy for the family, Madam has been demanding to watch Man U games and those of other teams for the purpose of betting ‘live live’ on TV.
Her favourite joint is a sports bar near their home, where she spent a good amount of time, watching football and placing bets on multiple platforms, hoping to win. The children are always left in the care of the nanny.
Over the weekends, she sometimes stay late into the night, watching football matches, reaching home when my friend has already had his first round of 50 snores.
To curb the menace, my pal invested in a DStv decoder, so that she can watch the matches at home and stay with the children.
While this curbed the lateness, another problem cropped up. She now could not miss those late night mid-week matches.
Her two passions – football and betting - do not only drain her finances, but they also hit her mood harder putting their bedroom life on ice. It is now months. On April 1, his wife put her money on Manchester United beating West Brom three-nil.
She lost and her mood changed from her usual smiling to gloomy. There were no fireworks in the kraal.
Again, on April 4, she placed her bet on Man U beating Everton 2-1 but the game ended in a one all. She lost a sum she did not disclose and ended up sulking following the double loss – of her team and money. That day Madam slept on the sofa in the living room.
Of course, there are brighter days like when Man U squeezed Wigan Athletic 4-0 on January 29 in the FA Cup match or when they beat Leicester 3-0 on February 5. But these are just countable times, because most of the time the club either draws or loses.
Inquiries show this predicament has not only affected women, but men too, especially those supporting Arsenal FC. You can count Man U or Arsenal FC’s wins since the current EPL season started to understand how hard the teams have hit the bedrooms.
