ASA rejects Betfred Bingo advert complaint

The ASA has decided against upholding a complaint made against a Betfred Bingo advert that ‘normalised gambling’ earlier this year.

The advert in question featured a woman in the match, a man making dinner and a woman on an exercise bike, all playing online bingo on mobile phones and tablets.

The voice-over stated, “Love to chill in the bath? Make it a thrill and a laugh with Betfred bingo. Forget those two little ducks, soak up the action and win big bucks. You can even join in whilst making the tea with games from as little as just 1p.

Play with Betfred bingo and enjoy top promotions such as daily free bingo games, bonus back and more. Put the fun back into house. Kick back and bingo with Betfred”.

Betfred defended themselves by stating that the ad didn’t encourage people to play bingo excessively or prioritise it over other social interactions. Rather, it implies that bingo can be played as part of solo leisure activities.

Betfred emphasised that gambling wasn’t portrayed as indispensable or favourable over social time with loved ones.

The ASA released its statement, saying: “The ad focused on how people could gamble using Betfred bingo while also undertaking tasks or leisure activities around the house. The characters taking a bath and exercising were shown playing bingo in conjunction with doing those tasks, rather than instead of them. Gambling was therefore not portrayed as taking priority over those tasks or as indispensable.

“During the section showing the character preparing a meal, he was seen throwing food in the air when he realised he had won a prize. While we considered the character’s exaggerated reaction to winning showed he was briefly distracted from his task, again we did not consider that this scene portrayed gambling as taking priority in life.

“We concluded that the ad did not portray, condone or encourage gambling behaviour that was socially irresponsible, or portray gambling as indispensable or as taking priority in life.”