How to quit sports betting: the practical guide for game days, parlays and live bets

If betting has cost you money you can't spare

Start with a person, not an app. A helpline or self-exclusion comes first if you are borrowing to bet, behind on bills or hiding losses. The National Problem Gambling Helpline, 1-800-MY-RESET (1-800-697-3738), is free and confidential: call, text or chat online, and they connect you with help in your state. If you are thinking about suicide, call or text 988.

Why sports betting is so hard to quit

Sports betting moved into your pocket fast. A 2025 study in JAMA Internal Medicine found that US states with operating sportsbooks went from 1 in 2017 to 38 in 2024, and yearly sports wagers grew from $4.9 billion in 2017 to $121.1 billion in 2023, with 94 percent placed online. Searches for gambling addiction help rose 23 percent nationally after the 2018 Supreme Court ruling that opened the market.

The habit is also wrapped around something you love. Every game is a cue, odds appear in broadcasts and group chats, and live betting lets you place the next one in seconds. "Sports betting addiction" is not a separate diagnosis: it is gambling disorder, the same condition the DSM-5 and ICD-11 describe for casinos and lotteries. The gambling self-test gives you an honest starting point.

Step 1: Delete the apps and block the sportsbooks

1. Withdraw any balanceMoney sitting in an account is an invitation. Withdraw what you can before you close anything.
2. Delete every sportsbook and casino appInclude daily fantasy and prediction apps if you use them the same way.
3. Block reinstalls and the websitesOn iPhone, use Screen Time to stop app installs and add each sportsbook site to the block list. Our iPhone gambling guide has the steps for iOS 18, 26 and 27.
4. Add a blocker with a gambling categorySportsbooks run many domains. A blocker that keeps its own list of gambling sites covers the ones you would never think to type.
5. Mute the noiseTurn off notifications from sports and odds apps, unsubscribe from sportsbook emails and texts, and unfollow betting accounts.

Step 2: Self-exclude with every sportsbook and your state

Self-exclusion asks the operators to refuse you, so it holds even when your phone doesn't. In a review of self-exclusion research, people who self-excluded generally reported gambling less and feeling better, though programs didn't stop every breach.

• In each sportsbook app: find the responsible gaming section in your account settings and choose the longest self-exclusion it offers. A 24-hour or 30-day time-out ends right before the next big game.
• Through your state: there is no national US list, and programs differ by state. New Jersey lets you self-exclude online from online gaming and sports wagering for 1 or 5 years, or for life by video or in-person conference. Pennsylvania has separate lists for casinos, online gambling, video gaming terminals and fantasy contests, and online exclusions end automatically when the period you chose is over.
• If you bet in more than one state, enroll in each. Search your state gaming regulator's site for "self-exclusion", or start from NCPG's Help by State.

Step 3: Cut off the money

• Remove saved cards and payment links from every gambling account you can't close yet.
• Ask your bank or card issuer whether it can block gambling merchants. Options vary, so check the card controls in your banking app or call the number on your card. In the UK, Monzo and Starling have a gambling block in the app.
• Let someone you trust help manage savings or a second account for the first few months.
• Keep only the cash you need for the week on game days.

Step 4: Plan for game days, parlays and live betting

Your betting probably had a rhythm: certain games, certain nights, certain moods. Write yours down, then decide in advance what you will do instead. A plan made on Tuesday beats willpower in the fourth quarter.

• Game days: watch with people who don't bet, or somewhere public. Leave the phone in another room during the game, or skip the games that used to carry your biggest action for the first few weeks.
• Parlays: the appeal is a small amount for a huge imagined payout. Write down what you actually lost on parlays last season and keep the number on your phone.
• Live betting: in-game odds keep offering a new decision while you watch. Turn off push notifications and avoid second-screen apps while you watch.
• Group chats and podcasts: mute betting talk, leave the picks chat, and tell friends you're out.
• Payday and bad days: these are classic triggers. Plan something for the evening before the urge decides for you.

When an urge hits, the APA's advice is practical: reach out to someone, distract yourself, postpone the decision, and think through what happens after you place it. Urges rise and fall; urge surfing is one way to ride one out.

Step 5: Face the money and the debt

Going back to win back losses, "chasing", is one of the core signs of gambling disorder. Treat the money you lost as gone. A bigger bet to get even is the habit talking, not a plan.

• List every debt: who, how much, what is due when.
• Talk to a nonprofit credit counselor before you take a new loan or cash advance.
• NCPG's peer support list includes Debtors Anonymous, and 1-800-MY-RESET can point you to local help with money problems.
• If you share finances with a partner, tell them now. Hidden debt grows; shared debt can be planned.

Step 6: Tell someone and get support

Secrecy keeps betting going. Telling one person makes the next relapse harder to hide and the next urge easier to talk through. NCPG lists Gamblers Anonymous, SMART Recovery and the online forum Gamtalk for you, Gam-Anon for family members, and a national directory of gambling counselors.

Treatment works. A Cochrane review found that cognitive behavioral therapy reduced gambling and its symptoms right after therapy, though how long the effect lasts is still unclear. The APA notes that only about one in ten people with gambling disorder seek treatment, so asking for help already puts you ahead.