Gambling nearly cost former Celtic striker John Hartson his family, and six years on, he gives a heartfelt warning: the addiction could take over anybody’s life.

He reached rock-bottom when his wife threatened that if he did not stop, she would leave with their children, the former Premier League footballer told this newspaper yesterday.

He was a speaker at the second Responsible Gaming Conference, organised by Kindred and the Foundation for Social Welfare Services.

Foundation CEO Alfred Grixti said that while the national agency aimed to help prevent and treat gambling addiction, he was concerned by the low number of people seeking help.

The figures he quoted, in fact, show a slight drop in the number of people asking for support: 34 in 2013, 28 in 2014, 24 in 2015 and 25 last year.

“This does not augur well if we want to help these people in time, before it is too late, because we know there are many more out there,” Mr Grixti said.

More often than not, he noted, it was their next of kin or close friends who referred gamblers for help.

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