Televised gambling advertisements have played a major role in boosting betting activity during the 2022 Fifa World Cup, a new academic study has found, prompting warnings that existing advertising regulations may not go far enough to protect vulnerable groups.
Researchers from the University of Sheffield analysed betting patterns among men aged 18 to 45 in England through the Qatar tournament, focusing on how exposure to gambling ads during live broadcasts affected betting behaviour.
Their analysis showed that football betting occurred far more often during matches aired on channels that carried gambling advertising. Betting frequency was found to be between 16% and 24% higher compared with games broadcast on channels without such adverts. Viewers were also 22% to 33% more likely to place a bet when gambling promotions popped up during a match.
Although participants reported no previous issues with gambling, the researchers noted that men and younger adults are overrepresented among sports bettors in the UK and statistically more vulnerable to gambling-related harm.
Ellen McGrane, the study’s lead author and a research associate at the University of Sheffield’s School of Medicine and Population Health, said the findings suggest advertising can act as a strong catalyst during live sport.
“These television adverts may be acting as powerful triggers during live games, encouraging betting even among people who had no prior intention to gamble.
“One of our key findings was that this advertising doesn’t simply shift people between betting platforms; it increases the overall amount of gambling taking place.
“A substantial body of evidence shows that when gambling participation rises at a population level, gambling-related harm also increases, suggesting that the current restrictions in place may not be effective enough.
“Despite the scale of this issue, advertising rules are not being strengthened. Tighter regulation of gambling advertising during live sport may be needed, particularly ahead of highly televised events such as the World Cup, to better protect those most at risk.”
The Betting and Gaming Council (GBC), which represents the regulated gambling industry, disputed the suggestion that advertising levels are on the rise. It said promotions by licensed operators have overall declined in recent years, including during high-profile football tournaments.
A Betting and Gaming spokesperson said: “Millions of adults enjoy a flutter during major sporting events like the World Cup, with the vast majority doing so safely, supported by strong protections in place in the regulated sector.
“The evidence shows that advertising by licensed bookmakers is actually falling, reducing by 1.7% year-on-year since 2021. It now makes up just 2.7 per cent of total UK advertising, with 20% of advertising focused on safer gambling messaging. This decline has continued during major football events such as Euro 2024, when the number of gambling adverts shown per day was 20% lower than during the World Cup in 2022.
“Bookmakers already face some of the toughest ad rules anywhere and voluntarily introduced the whistle-to-whistle ban, which has cut the number of TV betting adverts seen by kids during live sport by 97% at that time.
“The real danger comes from harmful illegal gambling sites, which flood the internet with ads, carry out no age checks, and offer no protections.”