UK Gambling Industry Accused of Breaking Advertising Rules

UK advertising watchdogs believe that various bookmakers are violating rules with their ads.

Online sportsbooks make up half of all complaints turned into the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) last week.

In one particular ad, Austin Powers actor Verne Troyer (a.k.a. Mini Me) is rapping “my winning makes me so rich” for a BGO Entertainment commercial. Troyer is surrounded by a Ferrari, jet, mansion, bodyguard, and swimming pool while he’s rapping.

The ASA responded by banning the ad because it “suggested that gambling could be a way to achieve financial security.”

The ruling continued, “The ad suggested that, if they were up to the challenge and succeeded, viewers could live the extravagant lifestyle portrayed in the ad. We considered that the overall impression of the ad was that the man’s wealth was derived from his gambling wins, which viewers could also achieve.”

According to the Mirror, BGO, an offshore company in Alderney, claims that Troyer’s character owned the casino, rather than made his wealth through gambling.

Coral Interactive (Gibraltar) Limited also drew complaints when they offered enhanced odds and stated, “Get it while it lasts.” The problem is that Coral misrepresented that these odds will only be bettor-friendly for a limited time, which was deemed untrue.

Another complaint centered on TitanBet, which d a “risk-free bet,” but they didn’t make it clear that the wager had to be settled in four days.

Other big bookmakers that drew complaints include BetStars (Amaya), Ladbrokes, Matchbook, William Hill, Cosmo Gaming Company, NetBet, and Coral (again).

The ASA wrote the following statement about their take on gambling advertising:

“We have strict gambling advertising rules in place to protect consumers, in particular young and vulnerable people. As we’ve done in these recent cases, we will take firm action where the rules are broken.

“We’re monitoring the situation. The betting and gaming sector should be under no illusion that if there is evidence of a sector-wide problem or trend, we will not hesitate to intervene.”

With more sports gambling ads pouring onto UK and international television stations, each ment is undergoing more and more scrutiny.

Back in June, Bet365 was fined $2.75 million for misleading bettors with free bets. Online gambling bonuses have had fine print for years, but the practice is drawing more criticisms now that sportsbooks are doing more mainstream advertising in regulated markets.