First Dog on the Moon cartoon targets Albanese government’s delayed gambling inquiry response
The Guardian Opinion piece questions the timing of the government’s announcement and the sport’s financial ties to betting.
A cartoon published in The Guardian Opinion section on 20 May 2026 has drawn attention to the Albanese government’s handling of its own gambling inquiry. The satirical duo First Dog on the Moon used the platform to criticise the administration for taking three years to respond to the findings.
The artwork, titled “How can footy survive without gambling?! It never has before!”, underscores the delay in the government’s reply. The cartoonists noted that the response was finally released on budget day, a timing choice that invites scrutiny regarding the government’s priorities.
The piece references the longstanding financial relationship between Australian rules football and gambling sponsors. By asking how the sport can survive without betting revenue, the cartoon implies that the financial model of the game is deeply entrenched with the industry, suggesting a reluctance to disrupt these streams.
While the cartoon presents the claim that football has never survived without gambling as a rhetorical point, it highlights a broader public debate about the role of betting in sport. The satirical nature of the piece frames the three-year delay as indicative of the government’s hesitation to implement significant regulatory changes.
The publication of the cartoon coincides with the release of the government’s official response to the inquiry. The timing on budget day has been central to the criticism, with the cartoon suggesting that fiscal considerations may have overshadowed the urgency of the regulatory review.