The UK Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has delivered two contrasting rulings in its recent assessments of gambling-related advertisements. While Play’n GO Malta faced criticism for animated content deemed highly appealing to minors, Mecca Bingo escaped sanction over a Facebook post that used emojis in a film-themed puzzle.

Play’n GO ads deemed irresponsible due to youth-focused imagery:

In April 2025, Play’n GO deployed three banner ads through the programmatic platform Adroll. These banners showcased animated characters, including a superhero-themed Easter Bunny, a robot DJ, and anime-inspired princesses. Each ad was linked to separate slot titles—Easter Eggspedition, Spinnin’ Records into the Beat, and Moon Princess Origins. Although the ads bore appropriate 18+ labels, responsible gambling messages, and industry regulator logos, they appeared adjacent to children’s email inboxes, prompting complaints.

Play’n GO defended the content by stating that the characters were designed to resonate with adults and required an adult mindset to engage with the gameplay. They acknowledged the possibility that the style might inadvertently appeal to younger audiences but attributed the ad placement next to child-facing content to the technical limitations of programmatic targeting. According to the company, ads were only retargeted to users who had previously visited their site and consented to tracking cookies, a system they viewed as sufficient for reaching only adults.

According to the official press release from the ASA, despite these assertions, the ASA determined the ads violated CAP Code rules 16.1 and 16.3.12. According to its published guidance, characters such as princesses, superheroes, and robots are considered high-risk content because they often hold strong appeal for children.

The UK’s regulator of advertising concluded that while Play’n GO is not itself a gambling operator, its advertising still falls under gambling advertising standards because it promotes gambling software. The regulator emphasized that the targeting strategy—relying on user self-verification and cookie tracking—did not provide robust safeguards to exclude underage audiences.

The ASA stated that effective targeting would require platforms to use age-verified marketing lists backed by reliable data, such as payment information or credit checks. Since the ads were not served exclusively to verified adults, and their design clearly reflected elements of youth culture, the regulator deemed them irresponsible. As a result, the ads were found to have breached advertising regulations and must not reappear in their existing format.

Mecca Bingo’s emoji quiz post found compliant:

In contrast to the Play’n GO ruling, the ASA dismissed a complaint concerning a Facebook post by Mecca Bingo (Luton), which featured a quiz challenging followers to identify Tom Hanks films using emoji-based clues. Posted in May 2025, the image used a sequence of 32 emojis—including a teddy bear, mermaid, rocket, and airplane—to represent various movie titles.

The complaint questioned whether the post’s emoji content risked attracting children under 18. However, Mecca Bingo responded that the post was part of organic, unpaid engagement and was primarily visible to followers of its Facebook page—users who had to self-declare as over 18. The company cited Meta data indicating that 97.1% of the page’s followers were aged 25 or older.

As stated by the ASA, Mecca also explained that the post, created by a third-party agency in 2022, predated recent updates to its social media guidance, which now restrict the use of emojis. The company had since taken steps to delete the post and reissued internal policies to ensure future compliance.

The advertising regulator ultimately determined that the use of emojis, although cartoonish in nature, did not constitute a breach. The emojis were integrated into a film-themed puzzle aimed at adults and did not reference characters or themes strongly associated with children’s media. The puzzle’s context, coupled with the platform’s demographics, led the ASA to conclude that it was unlikely to attract significant interest from under-18s. Therefore, the complaint was not upheld.