Gambling Advertising

Gambling advertising is the promotion of gambling by casinos, lotteries, bookmakers or other organisations that provide the opportunity to make bets. It is usually conducted through a variety of media or through sponsorship deals, particularly with sporting events or people.

Although not as highly regulated as tobacco advertising and alcohol advertising, in many countries there are strict laws about the way in which such services can be marketed.

Gaming operators often sponsor sporting events, sportspeople or television coverage. For example, Bet365 sponsor snooker players and the Channel 4 coverage of The 2005 Ashes was sponsored by Betfair, both being online betting sites. In other instances, they will do stunts to get public attention. For example, many professional boxers have been sponsored by GoldenPalace.com, and sport temporary Golden Palace tattoos on their bodies.

To get around advertising restrictions, some online poker companies advertise free-play sites, like PartyPoker.net and PokerStars.net, and sometimes even call these free sites "poker schools". These sites restrict access to those of legal age, even though it is not required.

In Australia, the principle gaming agency TAB (Totalisator Agency Board) ran advertisements on TV during the 1990s, under the tagline "The Adrenaline Bet" (a play on the company's name). Since then, the TAB has been restricted from all advertising on television and other media, but is still allowed to print race dividends in the newspaper.

From September 2007 the UK will ban the advertising of around 1,000 gambling sites because they do not meet the guidelines dictated by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.