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The UK Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has upheld a complaint against an ad by BetIndex which featured professional footballers under the age of 25.
On 20 May, BetIndex published a paid-for Facebook ad promoting the Football Index gambling app, which featured the images of many footballers including England internationals 19-year-old Jadon Sancho, 24-year-old Raheem Sterling, 18-year-old Callum Hudson-Odoi, 21-year-old Marcus Rashford and French international 20-year-old Kylian Mbappe.
A complaint received by the ASA specifically related to an advert which featured Sancho, who has been promoted with the text “Jadon Sancho is now the football stockmarket’s third most valuable player, with many traders seeing handsome profits.”
The UK Code of Non-broadcast Advertising and Direct & Promotional Marketing (CAP Code) states that no one who is or appears to be under 25 years old may be featured playing a significant role in gambling marketing communications that are shown outside of the operator’s facility or website.
ASA disagreed with BetIndex argument that the under-25 players’ role in the ad was not significant, as it included many players and that the players were used to illustrate the features of the platform and what consumers would see if using the app. The ASA ruled that the advertisement must not appear again.
The ruling follows a similar decision from the ASA at the end of last season, over a social media promotion from Tottenham Hotspur, which featured Harry Winks and Davinson Sanchez, who are both under the age of 25, alongside the William Hill logo and accompanying text stating: “Latest odds from @WilliamHill” and provided a link to William Hill’s website.
