ASA Justifies Ruling against a Gambling Ad from BetVictor

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), the United Kingdom’s advertising regulator, announced it upheld its ruling against BV Gaming, a company trading as BetVictor in the country. The complaint relates to a paid ad on the social media platform Facebook.

Back in January, an ad for BetVictor on Facebook featured Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets, two soccer players for FC Barcelona. The ad included BetVictor’s logo along with the text “BetVictor” and “Who is the most underrated player at the club you support?”

Seeing the paid-for ad on social media, the ASA challenged whether it appealed to individuals under 18, which is in breach of the advertising regulations in the country. BetVictor contested the decision, claiming that the advertisement did not breach the advertising Code.

At the time of the announcement, the betting operator claimed that “CAP guidance stated that when a person or character was used to illustrate a subject of strong appeal to under-18s, their association with the subject was not a basis alone for the ASA to find an ad in breach of the Code.”

BetVictor challenged the decision, claiming that although the two soccer players were a part of FC Barcelona, they weren’t that popular in the UK. The operator explained that the players weren’t well-known stars such as Ronaldo, Messi or Mbappe for example. Additionally, BetVictor confirmed that neither Alba, nor Busquets held goal-scoring or attacking positions, or have recently hit news headlines.

The Advertisement Regulator Upholds Its Decision

Despite the operator contesting the decision, the ASA announced it upheld its initial ruling that the gambling ad seen on social media breached CAP guidelines. According to the advertising regulator, under the CAP Code of October 1, 2022, any marketing communications related to gambling products must not be likely to appeal to children or young adults.

“CAP guidance stated that, of relevance to gambling, football was the most prominent subject of strong appeal to under-18s. It was an activity in which a very significant proportion of under-18s participated directly on a frequent basis, and had a general interest in through following professional teams, and players, across a variety of media,“

explained a statement released by the ASA

Moreover, the ASA pointed out that such communication cannot be “associated with youth culture” and cannot include characters or persons that are followed by or are likely to appeal to individuals under the age of 18. Another point raised by the advertising regulator is that soccer can be especially appealing for audiences under 18 as such people can have a general interest in different professional teams and players. Therefore, ASA said, soccer players who play at an elite level can strongly appeal to children.

Keeping in mind that the ASA upheld its decision, it also said that BetVictor’s ad breached CAP Codes 16.1, 16.3 and 16.3.12. Consequently, the Authority said that the ad cannot appear in its current form.