Entain Complies with ASA’s Adjustment on Ladbucks Advertising

(AsiaGameHub) –   Entain has expressed its approval of the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) reversing a ruling that found a Ladbrokes advertisement to have potentially strong appeal to under-18s and to be in breach of the BCAP and CAP Code.

The advert for the Entain brand featured ‘Ladbucks’, the operator’s currency for free-to-play games. It was broadcast on television on 17 December 2024 and on video-on-demand services on 23 December 2024.

A voiceover in the commercial said: “This is a Ladbuck, the new way to get rewarded at Ladbrokes, and these are some of the 100 million Ladbucks that will be dropping weekly. Collect them on our free-to-play games and choose rewards like free spins, free bets and more. 

“Over 100 million Ladbucks dropping every single week. Plus, you can even use them to play your favourite games for free in our Ladbucks arcade. Like Fishin Frenzy and Goldstrike. Start collecting at Ladbrokes.com.”

The advert displayed images of coins marked with the letters ‘Lb’, together with text reading ‘100m LADBUCKS’, ‘FREE BETS’ and ‘FREE SPINS’.

In June of last year, the ASA upheld two complaints about the Ladbrokes advert. It stated that the Ladbucks name and design could appeal to minors because of their resemblance to the ‘V-bucks’ currency in Fortnite and the ‘Robux’ currency in Roblox, given the popularity of such video games among under-18s.

Consequently, the authority ruled the advert breached gambling advertising regulations. It instructed the operator not to show the advert again in its existing form and to avoid content in future ads that holds strong appeal for under-18s or mirrors youth culture.

This decision has now been overturned in a subsequent update from the ASA.

A spokesperson for Entain informed iGaming Expert: “We welcome the ASA’s decision to overturn its original ruling on Ladbucks advertising. 

“The independent review has recognised that this was a responsibly designed marketing that does not have a strong appeal to under-18-year-olds.”

In its updated assessment, the ASA observed that while there were some similarities, the poker-chip style of Ladbucks ‘primarily reflected long-established gambling conventions’. It was distinct from V-bucks and Robux in its lack of bright colours and was not employed in a way that referenced specific video games.

“We considered that although the name Ladbuck alongside the token’s imagery created some parallels with in-game currencies popular with under-18s, those similarities were not obvious enough to make the ads likely to be of strong appeal to under-18s,” stated the ASA.

“Those similar features were generic and did not invite an obvious comparison with the tokens used in Fortnite and Roblox. Therefore, we concluded the ads were not likely to be of strong appeal to under-18s.”

The ruling update clarified that Entain is not required to take any further action concerning the Ladbrokes advertisement.

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