Omri Kanda: "There are players in the Premier League who gamble, I support some of them"
Star of "Power Couple", Omri Kanda, who revealed his gambling past on the show, spoke about how top players approach him for advice: "Go to rehabilitation and pay the money, one way or another you will lose it."
Some of us know Omri Kanda from the Reshet 13 program "Power Couple" along with his partner, Dorin. But in 2010, he was one of the biggest stars of the historic Hapoel Tel Aviv team that reached the European top, the Champions League.
During that period of success, there were also less positive aspects. His name was linked to gambling and involvement with criminals, which caused his career to decline. In an interview with "Sichat HaYom" on the ONE channel, Kanda spoke about that period and revealed an interesting detail about top footballers in the Premier League.
"I had a period of gambling when I was a kid at Hapoel Tel Aviv, age 18-19, but that's not the issue. The issue is that a person gets into trouble, and it happens today. Only today, people talk to me and consult before they share it with their parents. The trouble is the issue; it's not to be ashamed and to share the moments and the difficult things you are going through. I didn't study medicine or counseling, but because of what I went through, I can advise others today. From my point of view, I would do everything the same again, just to help people," he said.
Kanda spoke about the fact that players consult with him on the subject: "Not one player, but players, and not from Liga Alef or the National League, but the Premier League too. A lot of famous players who gamble, the biggest of the famous, and I am not here to expose but to raise the problem and help. If an ultra-Orthodox person tells me, 'Listen, keep the Sabbath,' I will tell you that you were born into it, leave me alone. But if a person like me tells me, 'Keep the Sabbath, make an effort to put on tefillin,' then there is a chance that I will listen to him, because this is a person who went through what I went through and he is like me.
"Go to rehabilitation and pay the money, one way or another you will lose it. I don't want money, I tell them, 'Tell me the truth.' I'm not bored, but if you tell me the truth, there is a chance you will manage to get out of it, it's possible. You can lie to everyone, but you can't lie to yourself. This includes disappointment from everyone and losing friends. Money was not the issue, but I stopped because I had enough."
