Football’s Big Bet

With the new football season upon us our Clearance team have been rushed off their feet reviewing ads for the gambling sector. Coupled with the World Cup in Russia it’s been a particularly busy summer for the bookies on the radio. Gambling ads are always particularly tricky to approve partly because they typically include lots of complex promotions and need a fast turnaround, but also because we must carefully consider the potential risk of harm to vulnerable listeners from ads that could encourage problematic gaming behaviour.

The UK Code of Broadcasting Advertising (BCAP Code) contains provisions aimed at ensuring that gambling ads are socially responsible, with particular regard to the need to protect under-18s and other vulnerable persons from being harmed or exploited. This includes prohibiting radio ads for gambling services from appearing in or adjacent to programmes commissioned for, principally directed at or likely to appeal particularly to audiences below the age of 18. For context, that would mean before his birthday in May Ryan Sessegnon should have avoided such ads when listening to the radio.

The rules for TV are slightly different. On screen, gambling ads must not be broadcast prior to the 9pm watershed but an exemption exists for live sporting events. This has recently led to criticism of ITV’s World Cup coverage and suggestions that the volume of gambling ads broadcast during ad breaks exposed too many children to ads that could negatively affect them.  

We’re confident that the current Code rules and the scheduling restrictions we apply to ads for the gaming sector effectively protect younger listeners from potential harm, so we’ll be watching developments as closely as Jose watches Paul Pogba.