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Further restrictions will be introduced on gambling advertising during live sports programs during children's hours on commercial and subscription broadcasters, the Special Broadcasting Service (SBS), and online platforms. Gambling advertisements will not be able to be shown from five minutes before a live sports event commences, during the event and for five minutes after the event has concluded. The restrictions will apply between 5.00am and 8.30pm. Countries such as Australia have already taken legislative steps in regulating gambling advertising during live televised sports, with a 'whistle-towhistle' ban on gambling advertisements during.

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Cameron Smith celebrates the Kangaroos’ win against New Zealand in the NRL Anzac Test at GIO Stadium, Canberra. Picture: Mark EvansSource:News Corp Australia

IF YOU’RE sick of being constantly bombarded with gambling ads during the footy and cricket, there is some relief in sight.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has announced a ban on gaming advertisements during live sport before 8.30pm.

The ban, which will cover all sports broadcasts on TV and radio except racing, will start five minutes before kick-off and end five minutes after full time.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has discussed his gambling ad crackdown a day after he appeared on stage in New York to mark the 75th anniversary of the Battle of the Coral Sea. Picture: AFP/Brendan SmialowskiSource:AFP

“Parents all around Australia will be delighted when they know that during football matches and cricket matches, live sporting events before 8.30, there’ll be no more gambling ads,” Mr Turnbull told reporters Friday morning in New York, where he travelled to meet US President Donald Trump.

“This will be welcomed by Australian parents right around the nation.”

The ban covers not only ad breaks, but also on-screen promotions, sponsorships and live crosses to betting companies during the matches, according to the Herald Sun.

Expect to see fewer ads for betting agencies during live sport, such as the NRL Anzac Test. Picture: Mark EvansSource:News Corp Australia

The crackdown is intended to curb problem gambling and make watching sport more family-friendly.

The changes will be officially announced today as part of a broader suite of reforms to the TV industry.

While the gambling ad restriction will mean a loss in revenue for Seven, Nine and Ten, the government has vowed to scrap the $130 million licence fee free-to-air TV networks pay each year, according to The Australian.

The government will also abolish media diversity laws that prevent mergers and restrict how many assets companies can own in each Australian city.

The changes also mean Foxtel and other pay-TV companies can bid to broadcast more sport that, until now, free-to-air networks have had first dibs on.

The reforms come at a time when TV networks are struggling for advertising revenue as audiences fragment and drift towards Netflix.

Gambling advertising has increased rapidly over the past decade.

While smartphones, apps and social media have multiplied the marketing possibilities, a High Court decision in 2008 also played a major part in the dramatic increase in gambling advertising.

Gambling Advertising Restrictions Australia International

The effect of the ruling was to allow bookmakers to offer bets anywhere in Australia. The ruling also made it clear that states and territories were unlikely to be permitted to ban advertising from other parts of the country. The states and territories with bans, including Victoria, amended their legislation to remove them. The High Court case and subsequent ban removal resulted in a significant rise in the number of gambling companies operating across Australia, and a highly competitive market.

According to Nielsen Media Research, the gambling industry spent $273.2 million on advertising in Australia in 2018, up from $89.7 million in 2011. This excludes sponsorships and in-program content, such as during live sport broadcasts.

In September 2017, the Victorian Government announced a ban on betting advertising on roads and public transport, and within 150 metres of public schools. The laws apply to all static advertising, including on billboards and infrastructure like stations and bridges.

Mass media pokies advertising is also banned in Victoria. However, there is rising community concern about the proliferation of sports betting advertising on broadcast and digital media, particularly its effect on young people. Research findings substantiate this concern.

A Foundation-funded study – Extent of, and children and young people’s exposure to, gambling advertising in sport and non-sport TV – found that in 2016, there was an average of 374 gambling ads a day on Australian free-to-air TV. Two-thirds of these occurred between 6 am and 8:29 pm, when large numbers of young people were watching. There were around four times as many gambling ads an hour in sports programming than in non-sports programming.

374

gambling ads a day on Australian free-to-air TV in 2016.

Download image version of the infographic ' 374

gambling ads a day on Australian free-to-air TV in 2016.

'

x 4

Four times as many gambling ads an hour on free-to-air sports TV than on non-sports TV in 2016.

Download image version of the infographic ' x 4

Four times as many gambling ads an hour on free-to-air sports TV than on non-sports TV in 2016.

'

In Australia, ads for betting products are not permitted during TV programs classified G or lower from 6 to 8.30 am and 4 to 7 pm, or in programs directed at children between 5 am and 8.30 pm. Until 2018, these restrictions excluded sport broadcasts. On 30 March 2018, bans on gambling ads during broadcasts of live sport were introduced between 5 am and 8.30 pm. See the Australian Communications and Media Authority website for more: New gambling ad rules introduced.

On 28 September 2018, new complementary rules were also implemented to restrict gambling advertising during online streaming of live sport between 5 am and 8.30 pm.

The 2016 Foundation-funded study Child and parent recall of gambling sponsorship in Australian sport collected data from children and parents at community sporting venues in New South Wales and Victoria. Three-quarters of 8- to 16-year-olds interviewed could name at least one gambling brand, and one-quarter could name four or more.

The children interviewed also perceived that some forms of marketing were more influential than others, in particular, advertisements featuring celebrities. Funny videos that are not easily recognisable as advertising can also have a strong impact on children.

Another 2016 study reported that 75 per cent of 8- to 16-year-olds thought gambling was a normal or common part of sport. For more on this study, see ‘It's just everywhere!’ Children and parents discuss the marketing of sports wagering in Australia.

1 in 4

* Based on interviews with 152 children aged 8–16 attending community sporting venues

Download image version of the infographic ' 1 in 4 '

31 %

of Victorian secondary school students have gambled.

Download image version of the infographic ' 31 %

of Victorian secondary school students have gambled.

'

Participants in the 2016 studies were able to describe incentives offered by bookmakers, such as ‘bonus bet’ offers and ‘cash back’ deals, which likely contributed to their belief that you could not lose from gambling. This perception is not limited to young people. Incentives or inducements are a form of marketing used to attract new customers or to trigger further gambling. There is also evidence they can lead to people underestimating the risks they are taking.

A 2018 study funded by the Foundation investigated the effects of wagering marketing on vulnerable adults and found that many vulnerable bettors were heavily exposed to wagering marketing, which led them to place bigger and more frequent bets.

A follow-up study looking at direct texts and emails sent by wagering operators found this direct messaging to be extremely frequent and likely to contribute to risky gambling.

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In 2019, the Foundation released research exploring gambling attitudes, behaviour and exposure among Victorian secondary school students, which found 31 per cent had gambled at some point in their lives, and six per cent had gambled in the previous 30 days. Just under three-quarters of all students had been aware of gambling advertisements or promotions on TV in the past month. This exposure was linked to increased likelihood of gambling.

Our Love the Game Sporting Club Program works with local and elite sporting clubs to reduce young people's exposure to sports betting advertising and counter the social norm of gambling in sport.

See some of our sporting hero partners talk about loving the game, not the odds:

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Our School Education Program supports secondary school communities to help young people develop informed attitudes to gambling.

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Find out more about our work to address the normalisation of gambling at Love the game, not the odds.