Global sports betting and gaming group, GVC Holdings, has announced they are seeking an end to the sports betting broadcast advertising in the United Kingdom. The owner of Ladbrokes and Coral have announced that all advertising related to sports betting should be ceased during live as well as repeated events. The group does exempt horse racing from their request. Proposals by the company include advertising related to gaming to be broadcast, but only items specifically targeting responsible gambling as well as safer gambling initiatives.

Safer Gambling:

GVC would like to see safer gambling initiatives created, limiting such gambling advertising to one per commercial break. The company is calling for more action than the advertising ban that is to be introduced during the beginning of the 2019-2020 football season by August.

The group helped to bring about the upcoming advertising restrictions, but they feel that the advertising ban does not go the distance to protect consumers. Along with their requested advertising ban, the group has announced their Changing for the Bettor campaign. The new campaign will work on tackling gambling-related harm.

According to GVC…

The campaign focuses on several elements. First, a shirt sponsorship and perimeter advert ban would be initiated. The company has announced they will be ending all sponsorship deals involving football shirts with teams in the UK. They will also be banning perimeter board advertising at football facilities. This will allow fans to watch the games without having any visuals to stimulate betting. GVC would like to see their peers do the same.

It has also committed to raising their Research, Education and Treatment (RET) at a rate of 1% by 2022. The current percentage is 0.2% of their UK gross gambling revenue.  A new trust is also being created by GVC with funds being used to make contributions to assist in treating problem gambling. The first recipient of such funds has already been named. The Leon House center of Manchester will be have the first donation.

Furthermore, it has pledged to offer the GamBan software to customers, which is free to anyone who is showing signs of problematic gameplay.

Kenny Alexander, CEO at GVC, commented on the new proposals by stating: “Whilst the vast majority of our customers enjoy our products responsibly, it is high time that the industry did more to protect its customers from potential harm. As the UK’s largest gambling company, and owner of Ladbrokes and Coral, we at GVC are doing exactly that. I call on our industry peers to help us bring about an end to broadcast advertising which promotes sports-betting in the UK no matter the time of day.”

“Increasing investment in research, education and treatment ten-fold by 2022, funding treatment centers and using technology to intervene before a problem develops, alongside our existing behavioral analytics, brings to life our commitment to be the most trusted and enjoyable betting operator in the world.”

“The industry should and can do more to protect the vulnerable, and today’s announcement demonstrates GVC’s commitment to delivering on that.”