Responsible Gaming
Listening to prevent: Heart2Heart Ticino and Italian-speaking Grisons alongside Casinò Lugano in continuous training 21.09.2026
A project dedicated to listening, communication and managing the most sensitive situations in the context of Responsible Gambling
Listening is a skill that requires preparation, experience and continuous development. It becomes even more important in professional contexts where employees may find themselves speaking with people who are going through a difficult time or showing signs of distress.
This awareness gave rise to the collaboration between Heart2Heart Ticino and Italian-speaking Grisons and Casinò Lugano, developed through a continuous training programme aimed at employees who interact with players through the Swiss4Win online casino.
The initiative is a concrete example of how the expertise developed by Heart2Heart Ticino and Italian-speaking Grisons in the field of listening can also be transferred within organisations, helping to strengthen the preparation of people who are called upon to manage sensitive conversations and potentially complex situations.
The need: going beyond procedures
In the gambling sector, player protection is based on regulations, monitoring tools, internal procedures and prevention measures. These elements are essential, but they must also be accompanied by appropriate interpersonal skills.
Customer Service employees and the team dedicated to Responsible Gambling may in fact represent one of the first points of contact for a person who is experiencing difficulty.
Distress is not always expressed explicitly; knowing how to listen means understanding what is being communicated without judging, maintaining the appropriate professional distance and guiding the person towards the most appropriate support tools or services.
The 143 response
Thanks to its experience in supportive relationships, 143 has developed a training programme for employees of Swiss4Win, the Swiss online casino of Casinò Lugano.
The training addresses the key aspects of listening and communication in the most sensitive situations, providing participants with tools that can be applied concretely during interactions with players.
The main topics explored include:
- active and non-judgmental listening;
- recognising possible signs of distress and the player’s emotional state;
- managing emotionally complex conversations;
- formulating open and respectful questions;
- the importance of silence and respecting the person’s pace;
- distinguishing between listening, support and specialist intervention;
- guiding people towards appropriate services and resources;
- managing the emotional impact of conversations on the employee.
The aim is not to turn participants into therapists or counsellors, but to help them develop greater sensitivity, awareness and confidence in managing dialogue.
Training built around real situations
One of the most important elements of the programme is the connection between the principles of listening and the situations employees may encounter in their daily work.
The training is therefore not limited to presenting theoretical concepts, but includes opportunities for discussion, simulations of real cases and reflection on the most appropriate ways of dealing with different people and contexts.
Through these sessions, participants can observe how even small elements of communication – a word, the tone used, a question phrased differently or the ability not to interrupt – can affect the quality of the relationship.
Heart2Heart Ticino and Italian-speaking Grisons provides not only knowledge and methodologies, but a genuine culture of listening: an approach based on respect for the person, the absence of judgement and the ability to recognise the limits of one’s own role.
The value of continuity
The ability to manage complex communication cannot be acquired through a single meeting. For this reason, regular sessions are organised to allow employees to consolidate what they have learned, discuss new situations and reflect on experiences encountered during their professional activities.
A model of collaboration with the local community
The project demonstrates how the expertise available within local social organisations can also generate value through collaborations with companies and institutions. In this way, Casinò Lugano can strengthen the preparation of its employees with communication and interpersonal skills.
The voices of those involved
Gaia Carnelli, Head of Social Concept for Swiss4Win at Casinò Lugano
«In the context of Responsible Gambling, procedures and prevention tools are fundamental, but the way in which we relate to people is equally important. The collaboration with 143 allows us to offer our employees qualified training in listening, communication and the management of the most sensitive situations. It is a programme that helps make our intervention more aware, respectful and attentive to the needs of each individual player.»
Paolo Sanvido, Director of Casinò Lugano
«Social responsibility must translate into concrete and continuous initiatives. Investing in the training of our people means strengthening skills and improving the quality of our work. Heart2Heart is, for us, a competent partner deeply rooted in the local community, capable of making a valuable contribution not only from a training perspective, but also on a human level.»
Stefano Silini, Site Manager of Heart2Heart Ticino and Italian-speaking Grisons
«Heart2Heart is an organisation based on the commitment of volunteers who receive professional training to respond to the needs of those who contact us in a moment of need. Not only is it a pleasure to be able to make our experience available to support the employees of Casinò Lugano’s Responsible Gambling service in preparing to face the different situations that may arise, but this exchange of experiences is also profoundly enriching for our trainers and, consequently, for our volunteers, helping them to better understand the needs surrounding this field.»
Marina Sala, trainer at Heart2Heart Ticino and Italian-speaking Grisons
«Through training in active listening, Heart2Heart aims to provide the employees of Casinò Lugano’s Responsible Gambling service with useful tools to recognise and sensitively respond to situations of possible vulnerability.
For Heart2Heart, the person is always at the centre, with their own story and their own difficulties.
Being able to share our experience and contribute to greater awareness and attention towards players in difficulty represents a valuable opportunity for collaboration and mutual growth for us.»
Listening as a form of prevention
The collaboration between Heart2Heart Ticino and Italian-speaking Grisons and Casinò Lugano confirms that prevention also depends on the quality of relationships.
A well-prepared employee can more easily recognise a conversation that requires particular attention, manage it with greater awareness and direct the person towards the most suitable resources.
At the same time, the training also helps protect those who listen, providing tools to deal with the emotional impact of more complex situations and to maintain the right balance between availability, responsibility and professional boundaries.
The project will continue through further training and discussion sessions, with the aim of consolidating the skills acquired over time and keeping the dialogue between the social and business worlds alive.
Further information
To learn more about the measures, tools and resources made available to players, you can consult the section dedicated to Swiss4Win Responsible Gambling.
To learn about the organisation’s activities, listening services and ways to support it, you can visit the website 143.ch/it.
Responsible Gaming
Responsible gaming, research and prevention: the partnership between USI and Swiss4Win 03.08.2026
Online gambling is one of the most sensitive sectors of digital development. The growth of the offering, the ease of access from mobile devices and the presence of unauthorised foreign operators are making player protection and the quality of prevention systems increasingly central issues.
In Switzerland, online gambling is permitted only within a regulated, authorised and supervised market. Authorised operators must comply with specific obligations concerning social protection, prevention, monitoring of gambling behaviour and player protection. By contrast, unauthorised platforms operate outside this system and do not offer the same guarantees in terms of player protection, supervision and integration into the Swiss prevention model.
The issue of responsible gambling, in fact, does not concern only the individual operator, but a broader ecosystem involving authorities, cantonal bodies, academia and prevention services.
It is within this context that the collaboration between USI – Università della Svizzera italiana and Swiss4Win, the Swiss online casino of Casinò di Lugano, takes place. The project aims to assess, through a scientific, data-based approach, the effectiveness of the social measures plan adopted by Swiss4Win in the area of responsible gambling.
The aim is to understand how monitoring and prevention tools are used in practice and to determine whether they can support the timely identification of situations of potential vulnerability, thereby helping to strengthen player protection strategies.
Swiss legislation requires casinos to adopt social measures and periodically assess their effectiveness. With this in mind, Swiss4Win has launched a collaboration with USI, recognising academic input as a fundamental added value for measuring and improving its social measures plan over time.
Through scientific data analysis, Swiss4Win can verify the effectiveness of the measures adopted and, where room for improvement emerges, adjust the criteria and tools used.
For Casinò di Lugano and Swiss4Win, operating within the regulated Swiss system means not only complying with the obligations established by legislation, but also actively contributing to their purpose: protecting players, preventing risks and promoting a transparent and controlled gambling environment.
The collaboration with USI therefore represents a further step in a process of continuous improvement, in which player protection is not regarded as a simple regulatory obligation, but as a process to be measured, analysed and strengthened over time.
As Serena Petrocchi, lecturer and researcher at USI, points out:
«At-risk gambling behaviours are a complex and dynamic phenomenon that can hardly be understood through individual indicators. The availability of behavioural data collected over time provides an opportunity to better study the factors associated with different gambling trajectories and to produce evidence that can help guide and improve prevention initiatives. Collaborations of this kind make it possible to bring research closer to real-world contexts, contributing to the development of scientific knowledge with potential practical implications for player protection.»
As Paolo Sanvido, CEO of Casinò di Lugano, points out:
“We are pleased to collaborate with USI on an issue as important as responsible gambling. For Swiss4Win and Casinò Lugano, player protection is a central element of how we operate within the regulated Swiss system. This project confirms the value of dialogue among authorised operators, academia and the local community, with the shared goal of promoting an increasingly informed, safe and responsible approach to gambling.”
In a market where unauthorised offerings still represent a significant challenge, the role of regulated operators is becoming increasingly important. Regulatory safeguards, supervision, monitoring, social protection and collaboration with scientific and local institutions are elements that distinguish the Swiss model from uncontrolled or unauthorised environments.
The collaboration between USI and Swiss4Win by Casinò Lugano confirms that player protection can also be strengthened through dialogue between scientific research and authorised operators. This approach helps develop increasingly effective prevention tools and promote a safe, transparent online gambling model focused on protecting the individual.
Further information
To learn more about the measures, tools and resources available to players, please visit the dedicated Swiss4Win Responsible Gaming section.
For updates, research projects and the latest news from Università della Svizzera italiana, please visit the USI News and Events section.
Responsible Gaming
SafeZone and Swiss4Win: A Partnership to Protect People’s Well-Being in Online Gaming 03.08.2026
Gaming has always been part of the human experience: an opportunity for entertainment, a moment of social interaction and an expression of freedom. However, like any form of freedom, it requires awareness, rules and tools to prevent it from becoming an addiction or a source of distress.
In the digital environment in which we live, online gambling has become increasingly accessible. This development brings new opportunities, but also new responsibilities. For this reason, Swiss4Win by Casinò Lugano has chosen to collaborate with SafeZone.ch, a Swiss online counselling service active in the prevention and treatment of addictions, promoted by Addiction Switzerland and supported by the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH).
A shared commitment: protection and support
The mission that unites Swiss4Win and SafeZone is clear: to promote a healthy and balanced gaming experience that respects individuals and their personal circumstances. This means not only complying with responsible gaming regulations, but also adopting an ethical and inclusive approach that takes human vulnerability into account and promotes a culture of prevention.
This collaboration was established with the aim of providing practical tools and accessible resources to people who play, as well as to their family members, friends, healthcare professionals and anyone who may be directly or indirectly affected by gambling-related difficulties.
SafeZone: when anonymity becomes a valuable resource
SafeZone.ch is a national platform providing anonymous, free and professional counselling to anyone wishing to discuss an addiction – not only gambling addiction, but also issues involving alcohol, substances, digital media and much more. SafeZone’s strength lies in its discretion and accessibility: people can ask for help without revealing their identity, in a safe, supportive and non-judgemental environment.
Users can:
- Chat directly with specialised professionals
- Submit questions anonymously and receive personalised answers
- Book online counselling sessions
- Access an extensive network of support centres throughout the country
The platform is available in Italian, German and French and can be accessed from a computer, tablet or smartphone. This also enables people living in remote areas or experiencing mobility difficulties to receive qualified support.
Swiss4Win: protection and awareness tools
The collaboration with SafeZone forms part of Swiss4Win’s wider commitment to responsible gaming, an approach that goes beyond communication by offering practical tools:
- Setting limits on deposits, losses and playing time, which can be configured directly from the user profile
- Temporary or permanent self-exclusion, to provide protection during particularly difficult periods
- Monitoring personal gaming habits, to help users remain aware of their behaviour
- A dedicated Responsible Gaming section containing resources, frequently asked questions, links to support organisations and practical guidance
- Direct access to SafeZone, making it easier to take the first step towards requesting help
Through this partnership, Swiss4Win aims to promote a new gaming culture that places individuals, their well-being and their ability to make informed choices at its centre.
A network of care and prevention
SafeZone, together with its regional partners, serves as a bridge between the digital and social worlds. Every contact can mark the beginning of a journey, ranging from a simple request for information to therapeutic support. The platform works closely with regional counselling centres, psychologists, educators and social workers.
Swiss4Win recognises the value of this network and is committed to increasing its visibility, so that more people can find a source of support before a problem develops into an emergency.
Beyond gaming: an alliance for dignity
For Swiss4Win, promoting Responsible Gaming means taking care of the user experience in all its complexity: not only treating someone as a player, but also as an individual, a citizen and a person with their own story.
Thanks to the collaboration with SafeZone, this commitment now offers new possibilities. The aim is not to delegate the problem, but to address it together through an alliance between the public and private sectors, between technology and humanity, and between prevention and listening.
Because healthy gaming is free gaming
Gaming should always be a choice, never an escape. A moment of entertainment, not a compulsion. A passion, not a danger.
Swiss4Win and SafeZone work together to make this possible. Because truly responsible gaming leaves room for freedom, dignity and peace of mind.
Useful contacts
📍 SafeZone
Official website: www.safezone.ch
Free and anonymous online counselling service for addiction-related issues
Counselling via chat and email | Languages: Italian, French, German
📍 Swiss4Win – Casinò Lugano
Responsible Gaming: www.swiss4win.ch/en/responsible-gaming
Playing responsibly is the first step towards genuine enjoyment.
Swiss4Win and SafeZone. Together, for safer gaming.