The regulation of the advertising of betting houses, online games and similar services was one of the star projects of the Ministry of Consumption. The regulation has been making headlines for months, but now it is a fact. On August 30, the Royal Decree that manages it came into force and, since then, it is mandatory when serving advertising linked to these companies.
The return to normality and the routine that September usually brings and the coming months of sports competitions will already be marked by the new change of law. What cannot be done now and what advertising practices will be prohibited? The Ministry of Consumption itself has recalled on its Twitter account what the regulatory change implies.
“From today the advertising of betting and games of chance is restricted,” it published after the entry into force. The rule prohibits many of the advertising practices that these companies were employing to reach their potential consumers. Sports sponsorship will be totally prohibited.
“The brand of game operators may not be displayed on kits, or be part of the name of stadiums, teams or competitions,” they recall from the ministry. It must be remembered that these companies had been one of the main sponsors of the sports teams of the most popular competitions. They were the queens of soccer jerseys.
Changes in advertising
Neither will it be possible to broadcast advertising. The ban affects radio and television and practically all broadcast times. These companies will only be able to advertise between 1 a.m. and 5 a.m. Likewise, they will also be banned from using celebrities in their campaigns, whether they are real people or fictional characters.
The deposit bonuses disappear, as well as an age control will have to be activated to prevent minors from seeing these ads. The regulations of the ministry also affect what happens on the internet: these advertisers can only serve online ads – from website campaigns to email marketing, going through everything else – when the recipient has given their consent.
The regulation of gambling came into force a few months ago, but the different measures have been gradually activated. Gambling and betting ads had not yet disappeared and companies in this sector had been taking advantage of the last few months to launch their shares. During the Eurocup, for example, the general director of Regulation of the Game, Mikel Arana, considers that it has been “abused”. The campaigns closed before the royal decree came into force in November were able to go ahead. From now on, it will no longer be possible.
What about soccer jerseys
The last months were thus also a kind of closing of the cycle for the football teams, which have had to look for new sponsors for this new season to cover the space that the betting and gaming companies occupied until now. These were ubiquitous and one of the main sponsors. What strategy have the teams followed? The response has been mixed, as Nius’s accounts show .
Some have taken advantage of the last weeks, given that the League began in August and the rule did not come into force until the 30th, to continue showing advertising for a bookmaker, as did Cádiz. Others have taken to the field in these first weeks without advertising, waiting to close sponsorship contracts, as has happened with Granada or Alavés. The rest have already filled that space with new sponsorships. Tech companies and finance companies have taken the place they left, with the emergence of cryptocurrency advertising.