The Dutch gambling regulator, Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), has issued an official warning to BetMGM over an ad featuring 17-year-old FC Barcelona player Lamine Yamal.
Dutch gambling laws prohibit bookmakers in the Netherlands from using images of or partnering with individuals seen as having a lot of influence over younger demographics. The current regulations prohibit any promotions featuring individuals under the age of 25.
At just 17 years of age, Yamal has a big following among youth around the world, and the Barcelona star is also under the legal betting age of 18 in the Netherlands.
BetMGM quickly removed the image
BetMGM removed the advertisement featuring the soccer star quickly, which led to the only action against the company being a warning.
A KSA statement read, “The KSA has dealt with the violation with a warning, because BetMGM quickly ended the violation and took adequate measures to prevent recurrence.”
However, the regulator did voice concern that the sports betting operator did not report the incident, which is necessary when any errors are made by betting companies.
The statement continued, “The provider did not report it, but should have: licensees are required to inform the KSA of errors on their part that could pose a danger to consumers.”
Tougher restrictions on gambling ads
Starting next month, all sports sponsorships related to gambling will be banned in the Netherlands. This marks a trend in Europe in restricting gambling advertising.
The Premier League in England also voted in favor of removing all betting companies from the front of shirts from the start of next season (August 2026). Betting brands spent about $135m (£104m) on shirt deals in the English top flight this season.
Additionally, Brazilian lawmakers have proposed a ban on gambling advertising at soccer matches, but clubs are opposing the plans for fear of the negative financial impact it will have.
Belgium and Italy already have bans on sports teams promoting betting companies, but clubs work around front-of-shirt bans by displaying logos of gambling companies’ charitable foundations or news/entertainment websites.
In the US, the Supporting Affordability and Fairness with Every Bet (SAFE Bet) Act proposes a series of restrictive measures on gambling advertising and calls for federal standards.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal introduced the bill, stating, “We need to impose safeguards and guardrails for this industry, and the way to do it is through a federal standard. The state standards for gambling are half baked and faint hearted.”
Similar to the Netherlands, the American Gaming Association’s code stipulates that sports betting messages should not appeal primarily to individuals below the legal betting age of 21 years old.
Adam Roarty
Adam Roarty
Adam is an experienced writer with years of experience in the gambling industry. He has worked as a content writer and editor for five years on sites such as Oddschecker, CoinTelegraph and Gambling Industry News, bringing excellent knowledge of the world of sports betting and online gambling. Adam focuses on emerging stories in the ever changing landscape of betting in the US. Read the latest on prediction markets, changing legislation, and sweepstakes.