Oct 19 2011
Former Celtic striker John Hartson has revealed that he is being hounded by creditors over more than £300,000 of gambling debts.

Despite having signed up to an Individual Voluntary Agreement, the ex-football star has claimed that people are still “hassling” him for cash.

The 36-year-old father of four told the Sun: “Some people just can’t let it go and they are still hassling me. They are still offering me the opportunity to bet, trying to make a way into my friendship. I don’t want to go down that road again.”

The former Wales International, who has survived a battle with testicular cancer, said bookmakers are still hounding him in an attempt to get him to start gambling again, despite being signed up to an IVA.

He confessed that he previously owed up to £400,000 as a result of his betting addiction.

The IVA agreement John Hartson has entered into will see him repaying 12p of every pound of the remaining debts owed. He now lives off a self-imposed £250-a-week budget.

Having previously played for Arsenal and West Ham as well as Celtic, the former footballer has now had his pension taken away to pay off creditors.

He continued, “I’ve paid back as much as I can of my debt. I cannot physically afford to repay any more. At one point I owed between three and four hundred grand.
“I have done my best to pay back what I can because I have never knocked anyone in my life. I’m a good guy. I was struggling with an illness: gambling.”

Source - Debt Management Today