A new rule, banning celebrities and athletes in Ontario from appearing in gambling ads, was passed yesterday by the Toronto-based Alcohol and Gaming Commission (AGCO). The ban will be applicable to all present and past athletes, cartoon figures, celebrities, entertainers, role models, symbols and social media influencers who are most likely to appeal to minors.
This move comes right after the second-largest province in Canada marked the first anniversary of iGaming which is a regulated online gambling portal and is a subsidiary of AGCO.
Earlier in April, AGCO opened consultations, demanding stricter regulations to control commercials that promoted online gambling. In its official statement, the commission noted that it was able to point out the marketing and advertising approaches that used prominent celebrities and athletes to specifically target people who were under the legal gaming age. The commission also expressed deep concern about the potential harm such sociodemographic targeting could cause to the youngest and the most vulnerable segment of the country’s population. As of now, the legal age for sports betting in Ontario is 19.
In a country like Canada, where single-event sports betting is legal, this is indeed a cause for great worry. In fact, the country has witnessed a sharp rise in the number of gambling ads being shown on television, social media and print since the legalization of sports betting in August 2021. And some of Canada’s most distinguished and famous athletes have been seen promoting online sports betting since then. Take the examples of Auston Matthews and Connor McDavid who have been all over with these gambling ads. This has concerned parents, teachers, social scientists and experts in mental health alike in Ontario. And they all feel apprehensive about the extent of impact such commercials could have on young minds, considering that children always look up to athletes and celebrities for inspiration.
The Centre for Addictions and Mental Health is one of those many organizations that has welcomed the AGCO’s move. The organization has publicly supported restrictions on celebrities and athletes from appearing in gambling-related commercials since May this year. It has also made a more serious observation about these ads, which according to its research is designed to encourage more non-gambling people to gamble. Such acts, the organization claimed, were forbidden in many provinces other than Ontario because of the emotional and psychological risks such commercials carried.
The ban becomes effective on the 28th of February, 2024. And with this ban, AGCO hopes to protect Ontario’s youth from the influence of online betting.
