UK gambling ads struck by the regulator

The ASA has ruled against three UK gambling ads from William Hill, Paddy Power and Monopoly Casino, following complaints against them.

UK.- Gambling advertising regulations have recently changed and are already impacting on operators. The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) upheld complaints against three operators over regulatory breaches in different ads.

The involved operators are William Hill, Paddy Power and Monopoly Casino. The regulator upheld complaints about different UK gambling ads which didn’t comply with the rules.

In William Hill’s case, they tweeted the line up for a Tottenham game on March 5. As it included two under-25 years old players (Davinson Sanchez & Harry Winks), it breached regulations. As it was offering the opportunity to place a bet on the match, the ASA demanded the ad not to be shown again.

Meanwhile, Paddy Power’s Paddy Power Rewards ad suggested gambling could lead to an individual achieving financial security and improved self-esteem.

“The ad implied viewers should follow his example, and that their route to doing so was joining Paddy Power’s Rewards Club,” the ASA said. “For that reason, we considered the ad implied gambling was a way to achieve financial security and improved self-image, and we concluded the ad was irresponsible.”

Paddy Power responded: “There was no suggestion in the ad that people should gamble either a huge amount or in any way irresponsibly. No stake was mentioned to get into the Rewards Club, and no money was mentioned at all.”

The Monopoly Casino ad involved the using of the image of the character Mr Monopoly. “We considered that Monopoly was a family game generally played by or with children,” the ASA said. “Under-18s would therefore recognise and find the ad’s references to it appealing.”