SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
Australian online bookmaker SportChamps has been fined AU$17,500 (£9,000) by the government of New South Wales for breaching the state’s gambling advertising rules.
According to Liquor & Gaming NSW, the sportsbook pleaded guilty in court over two instances of gambling promotion, one on its website and one in a Facebook post, inviting people to “Punt for free. Learn the game!” and “Receive a free bet each day” respectively.
This is in direct contradiction to the Betting and Racing Act which prohibits the publishing of inducements that can lead to opening a betting account, referral of friends to open a betting account, or consent to receiving gambling advertising.
Jane Lin, Executive Director of Regulatory Operations at Liquor & Gaming NSW, further highlighted that this is the sixth incident where SportChamps has been found guilty of breaching gambling advertising rules since 2017.
She commented: “It’s extremely concerning that this operator has amassed multiple convictions for breaching laws which are in place to protect people from gambling harm.
“Wagering operators can legally advertise their products in a variety of ways, but they can’t advertise or promote inducements such as offers of increased odds or bonus bets to entice people to open a betting account.
“Offences like these have the potential to undermine the entire regulatory framework, which is why we take a zero-tolerance approach to this type of advertising.”
As a final statement, Liquor & Gaming NSW concluded that SportChamps has tried to increase its reach and market share with “no regard for the state’s gambling laws”.
Australia’s current cabinet under PM Anthony Albanese has been repeatedly asked to introduce tougher restrictions against online gambling adverts, with the state of Victoria being one of the louder voices in favour of such measures.
