Paul Merson not getting Strictly Come Dancing fee - as it's going to someone else

Ex-Arsenal and England star Paul Merson is currently competing in Strictly Come Dancing, but his earnings from the BBC show won't ever pass through his own hands

Former Arsenal star Paul Merson is fighting to stay in the Strictly Come Dancing competition as the popular TV show returned for another weekend of glamour and excitement. After narrowly avoiding elimination in Week 3, Merson is determined to make the most of his time on the show.

The ex-England player has been open about his struggles with addiction and personal demons, and he hopes to inspire others by participating in the programme. "Being an addict and a recovering alcoholic myself... to show people watching this show who have got addictions, that you can go out and do something like this... is so important," he said.

Merson added: "Because addiction takes you away from everything. That's all it ever does. It wants you on your own."

As he continues on his Strictly journey, Merson reflected: "Now I'm going in front of millions of people doing something I'm not very good at. I used to think, 'I can't do things like that' but now I've got the opportunity to try."

Merson's battle with addiction, particularly gambling and alcohol, is well-known. He has been a vocal advocate for changes in the gambling industry after admitting that his addiction cost him an astonishing £7 million over three decades, reports the Mirror.

Now barred from all betting firms, his earnings, including the six-figure sum he'll earn from his Strictly stint, are directly transferred to his wife Kate to prevent him from squandering them on gambling. He revealed to talkSPORT that his gambling problems led him to contemplate suicide "every day", feeling relief only when he "had nothing left".

"When I got to zero I was like, 'I don't have to do this any more'," he shared. "How mad is that? I was playing at Aston Villa playing away at Charlton. No one ever shared a room with me because I was gambling and never slept in the afternoon and I wanted to break my fingers so I couldn't pick the phone up - that's how bad the compulsion was."

In another candid admission, he confessed that his struggles continued during the Covid-19 lockdowns, as he gambled away a £160,000 deposit for a family home on table tennis bets.

Earlier this year, Merson proudly announced that he has been clean and sober from alcohol and drugs for five years, having also battled these addictions during his career. In 1994, he admitted at a press conference that he was addicted to cocaine, prompting the FA to intervene and send him to rehab.

In a candid piece for the Mail, former footballer Paul Merson recounted his struggles with addiction, revealing the extent to which it affected his life and career. He shared harrowing details in his book about his drug use, even before training sessions, and how he would frequent an all-night pub, resorting to snorting cocaine in solitude.

"I started going to an all-night pub in Smithfield Market. Drinking on my own and snorting in the toilets," he disclosed, further admitting, "I'd hail a black cab at 8am to take me up to training and even have a couple of big hits sitting in the back."

Merson's troubles escalated as he faced pressure from bookies and dealers, leading him to exchange his Arsenal blazer to settle a cocaine debt and falsely report it stolen. Despite these challenges, Merson, who enjoyed a successful career with teams like Arsenal, England, Middlesbrough, Aston Villa, and Portsmouth, has turned his life around and is now estimated to be worth £12 million.

On a personal note, he recently celebrated eight years of marriage with his wife Kate, with whom he shares three children. Prior to this, Merson was married to Lorraine Costin, with whom he had three sons, but their marriage ended in 2001 when she discovered the full extent of his gambling issues.

His later marriage to Louise Bache, the mother of his twin daughters Mollie and Maisie, also ended in 2013 due to his continuous battle with addiction. Displaying a more jovial side on the Strictly launch show, he joked about his sparse dance history: 'I've danced three times - they were all at my weddings!"