Note: This advice is given by the CAP Executive about non-broadcast advertising. It does not constitute legal advice. It does not bind CAP, CAP advisory panels or the Advertising Standards Authority.
Under Section 16 of the CAP Code, gambling ads must be socially responsible and must not exploit the young or vulnerable. They should not suggest that gambling is a solution to financial or personal problems, nor imply it is indispensable, a rite of passage, or linked to sexual success.
Rule 16.3.6 prohibits ads from suggesting that gambling can enhance personal qualities such as self-image, self-esteem, control, superiority, recognition or admiration. This includes portraying gambling as a way to gain respect or overcome perceived shortcomings.
In one ruling, the ASA considered a Paddy Power ad that showed a short man in a limousine, flanked by attractive women, enjoying champagne and cigars. The ad implied that gambling had transformed the man’s self-image and earned him admiration, breaching the Code (Paddy Power plc, 23 April 2008).
An ad for Mecca Bingo featured two images with the captions ‘Before playing…’ and ‘vs after playing…’. The addition of a raised champagne glass and brighter, more exuberant clothes, in the form of a sequinned outfit with matching jewellery, presented that person as having a higher level of confidence and an enhanced self-image in comparison to the same person in the image on the left. Therefore, the ASA considered that the ad implied that an individual would achieve that higher self-image by playing bingo and so breached the Code (Mecca Bingo Ltd, 15 November 2023).
Rule 16.3.10 states that gambling must not be portrayed in a context of toughness or linked to resilience or recklessness.
An ad for PokerStars.com featured poker champion Daniel Negreanu with the headline “PLAY MIND GAMES” and described poker as “a sport of courage, conviction and confidence.” The ASA considered these traits to be associated with mental toughness and resilience, and concluded that the ad implied gambling could enhance these qualities, making it problematic under Rule 16.3.10 (Rational Entertainment Enterprises Ltd t/a Pokerstars.com, 24 September 2008).
Similarly, a Supercasino.com TV ad showed a man gaining VIP access and admiration after presenting a casino chip, followed by a moment of apparent mutual attraction with a woman. The ASA found that the ad linked gambling with fame, recognition and enhanced attractiveness, breaching both Rule 16.3.6 and Rule 16.3.10 (Netplay TV Group Ltd t/a Supercasino.com, May 2012).