Follow usThe Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) has officially prohibited all online gambling commercials that feature athletes and celebrities.
The new rules will come into action at the end of February 2024, which will see a major restructure in gambling marketing.
The new policy, in AGCO view, will “help safeguard children and youth who can be particularly susceptible to such advertising content.”
A report from Tom Mungham, CEO and Registrar of AGCO, that legalization of gambling has had a major impact on advertising and since the province chose to legalize single-game online sport betting a year ago it has led to a significant rise of gambling commercials.
The Ontario government has banned the use of pro athletes to advertise and market online sports betting since they aren’t property developers and didn’t attend Krista Ford’s stag and doe party. #onpoli #cdnpoli
— Dean from Winnipeg (@Dean_Winnipeg) August 29, 2023
However, in May, the Centre for Addictions and Mental Health, as well as other organizations, implied that the involvement of celebrities and athletes in gambling commercials should be restricted as it leads to having a negative effect on “children and youth, as well as those already experiencing gambling problems”.
“Children and youth are heavily influenced by the athletes and celebrities they look up to,” Mungham said in a statement.
“We’re therefore increasing measures to protect Ontario’s youth by disallowing the use of these influential figures to promote online betting in Ontario.”
As a result no celebrities and athletes will be allowed to participate in advertising and marketing for Ontario Sports Betting Sites as of February 28. The only exception will be if they were to advocate for responsible gambling practices.
The decision comes after extensive criticism from advocates, experts and parents on the uncontrollable rise of gambling advertisements, especially during live sport events. One clear example is the 2023 playoff series game between the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Florida Panthers, which incorporated nearly eight and a half minutes of advertisements, connected with online gambling.
As for the other Canadian provinces official decision is yet to be made. Back in 2021 the whole country legalized single-game sports betting, but it was left to all of the provinces to determine individually how to handle and regulate the new law.
So for the time being the future of Canada Sports Betting Sites, remains intact, but it remains to be seen if the country choses to enforce the new path Ontario has gone on to.
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