UNITED KINGDOM · ADVERTISING ENFORCEMENT
ASA gambling advertising rulings, 2025 to 2026
The Advertising Standards Authority ruled on at least 31 gambling advertisements between January 2025 and October 2026 and upheld complaints against 23 of them. Most concerned social media posts, and the most common problem was content with strong appeal to under-18s.
- 31 formal ASA rulings on gambling advertising published from 1 January 2025 to 24 October 2026: 23 upheld, 8 not upheld (our count).
- Strong appeal to under-18s (CAP rule 16.3.12, BCAP 17.4.5) featured in 15 rulings, of which 9 were upheld.
- 18 of the 31 involved social media posts or paid social ads; an affiliate or odds-comparison service published the ad in 3 cases.
- The ASA says its AI-based monitoring system scans about 10,000 paid online gambling ads a month.
The Advertising Standards Authority, the UK's independent advertising regulator, published at least 31 formal rulings on gambling advertisements between 1 January 2025 and 24 October 2026, and upheld complaints in 23. An upheld ruling means the ad breached the CAP Code (for non-broadcast ads) or the BCAP Code (for TV and radio) and must not appear again in its current form. Most of the cases came from social media, and the rule most often at issue was the ban on gambling ads with strong appeal to under-18s.
This tracker lists every ruling we could verify on the ASA's site. It is not exhaustive: rulings the ASA did not file under its gambling topic, and many cases resolved informally without a ruling, are not here.
The rulings
| Ruling date | Brand (advertiser) | Medium | Issue and CAP/BCAP rules | Outcome | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 26 Mar 2025 | PokerStars (Stars Interactive Ltd) | Social media post (own Instagram) | Irresponsible portrayal: slots win presented as "investment"/skill (16.1, 16.3, 16.3.1) | Upheld | Ruling |
| 16 Apr 2025 | Fitzdares (Fitzdares Ltd) | Social media post (own site) | Strong appeal (ex-cricketer Stuart Broad) | Not upheld | Ruling |
| 04 Jun 2025 | LiveScore Bet (LiveScore Betting & Gaming (Gibraltar) Ltd) | App (paid in-app ad in under-18 version of LiveScore app) | Social responsibility: targeting (1.3, 16.1, 16.3.13) | Upheld | Ruling |
| 02 Jul 2025 | LEBOM (LEBOM Ltd) | Social media (paid ads, Facebook and X) | Irresponsible portrayal: betting plus drinking, self-esteem (16.1, 16.3.1, 16.3.6; also 18.1 alcohol) | Upheld | Ruling |
| 09 Jul 2025 | Buzz Bingo (Grimsby) (Buzz Group Ltd) | Social media post (own Facebook) | Strong appeal: AI "action figure" image (16.1, 16.3.12) | Not upheld | Ruling |
| 16 Jul 2025 | Mecca Bingo (Mecca Bingo Ltd) | Social media post (own site) | Strong appeal: emoji puzzle ad | Not upheld | Ruling |
| 16 Jul 2025 | Play'n GO (Play'n GO Malta Ltd) | Display (programmatic banners next to children's email inboxes) | Strong appeal: cartoon slot imagery; under-18s not excluded (16.1, 16.3.12) | Upheld | Ruling |
| 23 Jul 2025 | Hollywoodbets (Hollywoodbets International UK Ltd) | Website (paid banner on The-VFL.com shown to a logged-in 16-year-old) | Social responsibility: targeting (16.1, 16.3, 16.3.13; 1.1.2) | Upheld | Ruling |
| 27 Aug 2025 | Sean Graham (SP Graham Retail Ltd) | Circular (printed £5 matched-bet voucher, Cheltenham 2025) | Misleading promo terms: Gold Cup-day exclusion omitted | Upheld | Ruling |
| 03 Sep 2025 | Blackjackist (social-casino blackjack game) (KamaGames Ltd) | Social media (paid ad, X) | Other: "No purchases" claim misleading, since the game sells chips and chance items (3.1) | Upheld | Ruling |
| 17 Sep 2025 | Midnite (Dribble Media Ltd) | Social media post (own X) | Strong appeal: AI-generated Trent Alexander-Arnold "parody" (16.1, 16.3, 16.3.12) | Upheld | Ruling |
| 24 Sep 2025 | William Hill (retail) (William Hill Organization Ltd) | Printed in-venue voucher from gaming machine (non-broadcast) | Social responsibility: same-day £5 cash-match after £50 stake encourages repeat play (8.5) | Upheld | Ruling ‡ |
| 22 Oct 2025 | Betway (Betway Ltd) | Social media (paid YouTube pre-roll) | Strong appeal: Chelsea FC logo (16.1, 16.3, 16.3.12) | Upheld | Ruling |
| 22 Oct 2025 | Kwiff (Eaton Gate Gaming Ltd) | Social media post (own X) | Strong appeal: Sir Lewis Hamilton (16.1, 16.3, 16.3.12) | Upheld | Ruling † |
| 22 Oct 2025 | Sky Bet (Bonne Terre Ltd) | Social media (promoted X post) | Strong appeal: Gary Neville / The Overlap clip (16.3.12) | Upheld (unchanged on review) | Ruling |
| 29 Oct 2025 | William Hill Online (WHG (International) Ltd) | App (in-app banner for Marble Race Live) | Misleading bonus terms: "Enjoy £40 on us… stake £20" contradicted by a £40 minimum stake | Upheld | Ruling † |
| 26 Nov 2025 | Midnite (Dribble Media Ltd) | Social media post (own X) | Strong appeal: Son Heung-min (16.1, 16.3, 16.3.12) | Upheld | Ruling |
| 03 Dec 2025 | Betway (Betway Ltd) | Social media (paid Facebook video, British GP) | Strong appeal: Sir Lewis Hamilton; Facebook age-gating judged not enough (16.1, 16.3, 16.3.12) | Upheld | Ruling |
| 04 Mar 2026 | Match Bingo (RTSB Ltd) | Influencer/affiliate (paid segments in 442oons YouTube video) | Social responsibility: targeting under-18s (16.1, 16.3.13) | Not upheld (unchanged on review) | Ruling |
| 08 Apr 2026 | Gecko Play (Skill on Net Ltd) | Social media (paid Instagram) | Irresponsible portrayal: comedian's "pistachio" analogy normalising compulsive play and loss-chasing (16.1, 16.3, 16.3.1) | Upheld | Ruling |
| 15 Apr 2026 | Ladbrokes ("Ladbucks") (LC International Ltd) | TV and VOD | Strong appeal (BCAP 17.4.5; CAP 16.1, 16.3.12) | Not upheld (reversed from Upheld on review) | Ruling |
| 27 May 2026 | Betway (Betway Ltd) | Social media post (own Instagram) | Strong appeal: Thierry Henry (16.1, 16.3, 16.3.12) | Not upheld | Ruling |
| 27 May 2026 | Oddschecker (Cyan Blue Odds Ltd) | Social media posts (own Instagram) | Strong appeal: Harry Kane, Erling Haaland (cited as 1.3, applying section 16 reasoning) | Upheld | Ruling |
| 10 Jun 2026 | Midnite (Dribble Media Ltd) | Influencer post (TikTok, Mia Mon) | Strong appeal: influencer | Not upheld | Ruling |
| 01 Jul 2026 | Mr Vegas (Videoslots Ltd) | Social media (paid Facebook) | Strong appeal: two slot-game tiles (Pink Elephants 2, Razor Returns) (16.3.12) | Upheld | Ruling |
| 29 Jul 2026 | BoyleSports (BoyleSports (Gibraltar) Ltd) | Display (paid ad on racingpost.com) | Social responsibility: "Bank Builder Jackpot" needs bets on 4 to 7 days a week (16.3, 16.3.1). The ASA raised it itself | Upheld | Ruling |
| 12 Aug 2026 | Midnite (Dribble Media Ltd) | TV, VOD and radio (5 ads, 125 complaints) | Irresponsible portrayal: gambling as relief from frustration or escape (BCAP 17.3.1, 17.3.2; CAP 16.3.1, 16.3.3) | Upheld | Ruling |
| 09 Sep 2026 | top10onlinecasinoreviews.co.uk (Smart Gravity Ltd) | Paid search | Social responsibility: casino ad shown for the search "help with gambling" (1.3) | Upheld | Ruling † |
| 16 Sep 2026 | Midnite (Dribble Media Ltd) | Social media (paid TikTok) | Other: AI-generated character who seemed under 25 shown gambling (16.3, 16.3.14) | Upheld | Ruling |
| 16 Sep 2026 | Casimba; The Grand Ivy Casino (White Hat Gaming Ltd) | Display (banners on HLTV.org, an esports site) | Social responsibility: targeting under-18s (16.1, 16.3.13) | Not upheld | Ruling |
| 14 Oct 2026 | AI Scorecast (AI football-prediction/betting-slip app) (HRY Games) | Social media (paid Facebook) | Social responsibility and misleading: implied profitable "informed gambling decisions" (1.3, 3.1; 1.7 for not responding) | Upheld | Ruling |
What the ASA acted on
| Issue | Upheld | Not upheld | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Strong appeal to under-18s (CAP 16.3.12, BCAP 17.4.5) | 9 | 6 | 15 |
| Social responsibility, including targeting under-18s (16.3.13), CAP 1.3 and promotions that encourage repeat play | 6 | 2 | 8 |
| Irresponsible portrayal of gambling (16.3.1 to 16.3.6, BCAP 17.3) | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| Misleading bonus or promotion terms | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Other (someone appearing under 25 shown gambling; a misleading "no purchases" claim) | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Total | 23 | 8 | 31 |
The strong-appeal cases turn on who is in the ad and where it runs. Footballers with large young followings (Trent Alexander-Arnold, Son Heung-min, Harry Kane, Erling Haaland), Sir Lewis Hamilton and a Chelsea FC logo all led to upheld rulings. Ads featuring Thierry Henry, the former cricketer Stuart Broad and a Ladbrokes TV campaign were not upheld because the ASA found they were not of strong appeal to under-18s. Since October 2022 the test is absolute: an ad breaches the rule if it is likely to be of strong appeal to under-18s, whatever its appeal to adults. In October 2025 the ASA and CAP updated their guidance on protecting under-18s, adding text on social media and on which sports count as adult-centric.
Where the problem ads ran
Eighteen rulings involved an operator's own social posts or paid social ads, on X, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok or YouTube. Others concerned display banners placed next to children's content, in-app ads (including one shown in the under-18 version of a scores app), TV and radio, printed vouchers in betting shops, and one paid search ad. In that search case, an affiliate comparison site's casino ad appeared for the query "help with gambling", which the ASA found socially irresponsible.
The ASA's own monitoring now generates a share of these cases. In May 2026 it reported that its AI-based Active Ad Monitoring system reviews about 10,000 paid online gambling ads each month, and in July 2026 it said monitoring during the football World Cup led to 36 gambling ads being removed after contact with 7 advertisers.
Cases involving affiliates and influencers
In three rulings an affiliate made or published the ad: Smart Gravity's comparison site (paid search, upheld), an AI-generated TikTok ad made by Limay Media for Midnite (upheld; Midnite ended the contract), and Oddschecker's own Instagram posts (upheld; Oddschecker is an odds-comparison service that sends users to bookmakers, and the ASA treated it as the advertiser rather than calling it an affiliate). Influencers were involved in three more. The operator remains responsible in each case, which our affiliate enforcement briefing examines alongside Gambling Commission and Ontario decisions.
Guidance issued in the same period
Since 1 September 2025 the CAP Code also covers non-paid online marketing by gambling operators licensed in Great Britain but based overseas. CAP published updated under-18s guidance on 14 October 2025, a note on gambling "content marketing" on 11 June 2026 explaining that meme and editorial-style posts can be ads, and an enforcement notice on strong appeal in June 2026 ahead of proactive checks. The relevant rules are in CAP Code section 16; our UK source directory lists the rest.
Questions about ASA gambling rulings
What does it mean when the ASA upholds a gambling complaint?
The ASA found that the ad broke the advertising code. The ad must not appear again in that form, and the advertiser is told to comply in future. The ASA can apply further sanctions for persistent non-compliance, including referral to other regulators.
Which rule do gambling ads break most often?
In the 31 rulings we tracked, the most common issue was strong appeal to under-18s under CAP rule 16.3.12 or BCAP rule 17.4.5, which featured in 15 rulings, 9 of them upheld.
Does the ASA fine gambling companies?
No. The ASA cannot fine advertisers. Its sanctions include publishing rulings, asking platforms to remove ads and referring persistent cases; financial penalties for licensed operators come from the Gambling Commission.
Sources
- ASA: gambling topic and rulings (each ruling is linked in the table)
- CAP Code section 16: gambling
- CAP and BCAP guidance: protecting under-18s (updated 14 October 2025)
- ASA: keeping gambling advertising responsible and protecting young people (27 May 2026)
- ASA: World Cup monitoring leads to removal of 36 gambling ads (16 July 2026)
- CAP: gambling content marketing and the Code (11 June 2026)