The UK Gambling Commission has announced that it has fined online gambling company Betway £400,000 (€457,856) for marketing its services on children’s pages on Premier League club West Ham’s website.
Following an investigation, the Commission discovered that between April 14th, 2020 and November 6th, 2021, Betway’s logo and a link to its website were displayed on a page that offered children a downloadable picture of a teddy bear that young fans were encouraged to color.
The investigation also found that the logo and link also appeared on the ‘Young Hammers at Home’ page from October 24th, 2021 to November 15th, 2021.
Both instances of marketing placements breach the company’s licensing conditions and its obligation to advertise in a socially responsible manner. As a result, the Commission has issued a fine and warning to the company.
Speaking of the investigation, Leanne Oxley, Gambling Commission Director of Enforcement, said:
“Protecting children from gambling harm is at the heart of what we do. Although there is no suggestion that the operator was deliberately targeting children, or that children had been allowed to gamble, we take the breach of any rules aimed at protecting children extremely seriously.
We note the remedial actions since taken by licensee but advise all operators to learn from this case and ensure that they take responsibility and have the correct processes in place so that websites directed at children do not include advertisements for gambling.”
Last year, Betway was fined by the Swedish gambling regulator for offering illegal bonuses through its Swedish websites.
Based in London, Natasha is a former sports journalist with experience working for some of the biggest athletes & brands in the world of sports and iGaming.