Australian gambling giant Sportsnet has scrapped television advertisements encouraging viewers to bet in multiples following severe community backlash.
The advertisements revealed that Sportsnet, one of the leading operators for sports betting in Australia, is now accepting same-game multiple bets.
Multiples combine a series of single bets into one wager and the odds multiply with each additional leg of the bet, offering a greater reward for greater risk.
With these bets, all legs have to win order to receive a payout and if one loses so does the entire thing. After pulling the plug on their free-to-air advertisements, Sportsbet decided to move the promotion to the official AFL website instead.
The sports betting app voluntarily withdrew ads for the multiples on different platforms “after listening to stakeholder and community sentiment on gambling advertising.”
The new promotion on the AFL homepage encourages players to ‘bet now’ while advertising their new same-game multi feature which allows bettors to combine selections such as clearances, tackles and handballs.
It was confirmed that the advertisements did not breach any Australian laws.
MP Kate Chaney Blasts Gambling Industry’s Attempt To Self-Regulate
Chaney said: “Expecting gambling companies to take their own hand out of the cookie jar is a joke and the government must know it.”
Just weeks before the ad was published, Australian Minister for Communications, Annika Wells, met with the AFL’s chief executive to discuss the government’s plan to restrict gambling advertising.
Last November it was revealed the Australian government delayed its reform of gambling advertising rules until 2025. Labour had pledged to reform the matter but didn’t follow through.
At the time, Wells said not all sports stakeholders accepted the current proposals and a delay was required in order to strike a compromise.
Some politicians placed the blame on the government not having enough support in the senate, arguing Labour had not been able to find the numbers required for the legislation to pass.
Australia’s Proposed New Rules On Gambling Advertising
The proposed new rules on gambling advertising include a ban on broadcasting such commercials from one hour before and after live sports events. Pundits would also no longer be able to discuss betting odds during matches.
Proposals have also lined out a cap of two advertisements per hour on TV and a complete blackout during children’s programming. A full ban on TV and radio advertising is highly unlikely.
Joe Lyons is a betting industry writer for GamblingIndustryNews with years of experience on reputable gambling websites. Joe specialises in long form content in the world of sports betting and gambling. Joe is recognised as an expert in sports fields such as horse racing, soccer, NFL and NBA.
