Poll results: Sportsbooks worst hit by UK ad ban
Respondents believe bookies will feel most pain should all pre-watershed television advertising be prohibited
Sportsbook operators would be most at risk from a potential pre-watershed ban on UK gambling adverts, according to respondents to this week’s EGR poll.
Sports betting companies and bingo operators have enjoyed the freedom of TV advertising prior to the 9pm watershed â although the former only around live televised sports events – since the introduction of the 2005 Gambling Act, with casino and poker firms restricted to post-watershed slots.
However, the ability to advertise during the day has been thrown into serious doubt after the government announced it is conducting a review into gambling advertising.
And 41% of EGR readers believe sportsbooks would be hardest hit should a pre-watershed ban on gambling adverts be put into place.
A large number of sportsbook firms invest millions of pounds each year to advertise during televised sporting events before 9pm, with most of the UK’s betting heavyweights promoting odds around Premier League football matches on Sky Sports and BT Sport.
However, some 36% of respondents believe bingo operators would be hit hardest by a ban, with firms focused on advertising around daytime TV to attract stay-at-home parents.
The remaining 23% of voters said casino operators would be worst hit from a withdrawal of pre-watershed advertising, with a substantial amount of the vertical’s revenues generated via bingo and sportsbook cross-sell.
Government ministers are believed to be concerned with what they view as a proliferation of gambling adverts and their exposure to children, with The Times recently quoting one unnamed minster as saying “the gambling industry’s luck has run out”.