Tabcorp’s and Gambling Industry Veteran Calls for Ban, Restrictions on Ads in Australia

Former Tabcorp boss, Elmer Funke Kupper, has sounded the alarm over the existing regulatory framework protecting consumers in Australia. According to Kupper, the Albanese Government needs to get serious about enacting meaningful change in strengthening the existing gambling advertising rules, in particular.

Ex Gambling Boss Miffed at Frequency of Gambling Ads, Ponders Implications

Kupper has noted that ad rules need to be stricter, as currently 600,000 teenagers aged 12 to 17 had gambled in the past year alone, suggesting that young people who ought not to be involved in the activity are so. Early exposure to their childhood through public advertisement or their families has been a major contributing factor in this problem.

“I was surprised to be confronted with several sports betting ads in the thirty minutes before the centre bounce. I thought that the AFL and the government had dealt with this, and banned gambling advertising close to the games,” Krupper said in an op-ed piece published in The Australian Financial Review.

The issue is not with the way gambling is regulated. If anything, the existing framework works, but he cautioned that there is too little or insufficient regulation around gambling advertisements, which creates challenges and exposes youngsters to addictive products.

Many jurisdictions around the world have moved closer to either blanket bans or suspending untargeted advertising. Australia itself does not solicit players through bonuses, but gambling branding remains visible.

Current debates are centered on whether sports betting partnerships should be severed, including the restriction of gambling ads during certain hours. Proponents of this idea argue that young people love sports and want to watch sports, but they cannot do so without facing a torrent of gambling ads that normalize the activity and lead to serious consequences.

Dilly-dallying on the matter, Kupper suggested, was a lack of leadership, and the government and the AFL Commission ought not to have any issues with drafting and enacting broader and consumer-centric restrictions on gambling advertisement in general.

Gambling Ads Are Going Away – Sooner or Later

Kupper was not negligent of the implications that an advertising ban would have. For starters, suspending gambling ads – or limiting them in specific hours – would cut funding for free programs. Yet, public health cannot be bargained with, he believes.

“The industry may also argue that other forms of gambling do more harm. And they would be right. It’s just not a relevant point for this decision,” Kupper said, also factoring in some of the popular arguments that are used to push against a gambling ads ban.

The time to act is now, Kupper says, and gambling ads will be restricted if not banned outright sooner or later.