SBC News - Player Protection Hub

Australian regulator warns operators will be held responsible for influencers’ content

A.J. KoehnMarch 5, 2026059 views

Liquor & Gaming New South Wales (L&GNSW) has given gambling operators a heads up that the use of social media influencers will be a key enforcement focus in 2026.

The regulator, which monitors online wagering and gaming machine advertising visible to the NSW community, will closely examine operators’ marketing and customer retention practices, including affiliate and promotional arrangements involving social media personalities.

Hospitality and Racing Deputy Secretary, Tarek Barakat, said operators would be held accountable for advertising carried out on their behalf.

“We are putting gambling operators on notice that a key priority for us this year is examining their marketing and customer retention practices, including the use of social media personalities,” he said.

“Gambling operators should be careful about any affiliate or partnership arrangements as we are holding them responsible for the advertising of their products.

“The things we are targeting include paid and unpaid pr..

Campaigners promote Harmful Products Marketing Act in Australia

iGamingExpertMarch 4, 2026043 views

A new multi-stakeholder campaign has been launched in Australia which demands that the government takes action on “tightening advertising of unhealthy products” – the gambling industry in particular has been placed in the spotlight.

The nationwide initiative, titled “Give Us an Ad Break”, has been launched by the Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education (FARE) and has already received “the backing of more than 130 organisations and public health leaders spanning health, sport, research and social services.”

FARE is urging federal ministers to support the introduction of a Harmful Products Marketing Act – legislation that would impose clear legal limits on when, where and how harmful products can be advertised, particularly in environments where children may be exposed.

Its proposal is modelled on Australia’s tobacco advertising framework and seeks to curb the visibility of gambling, alcohol and unhealthy food promotions across broadcast, digital and outdoor media.

Campaign org..

Louisiana legislators put prop bet and sweepstakes bans on agenda

SBC AmericasMarch 4, 2026070 views

Louisiana’s 2026 legislative session begins on March 9, and legislators are already lining up a queue of gambling bills to discuss once the state Senate and House convene in Baton Rouge.

From banning prop bets and in-play micro markets to banning sweepstakes and legalizing iLottery, here are some things on the docket.

Time to prohibit props?

Senate Bill 354, which was pre-filed by Sen. Katrina Jackson-Andrews and has been provisionally referred to the Committee on Judiciary B, would change Louisiana’s sports betting statutes to remove the term “proposition bets” from the list of authorized wagers. It defines a prop as “a side wager” on a part of a sport or athletic event that does not concern the final outcome of the event.

While the list of authorized sports wagering markets includes “in-game wagering” and “in-play bets” SB 354 would also establish a brand-new definition for a “sports micro-bet,” meaning a prop bet that is placed while a sports event is in progress and which conce..

First review of BetStop lauds successful rollout and recommends better marketing

iGamingExpertMarch 4, 2026058 views

BetStop has laid new ground for comprehensive self-exclusion on AUS gambling licences and states, a dynamic dependent on the Labor Party’s stalled review of gambling advertising reforms…

The government of Australia has been warned that the BetStop National Self-Exclusion Register (NSER) cannot be viewed as a “silver bullet to stop the rise of gambling addiction rates”.

The warning has headlined the review of the BetStop register by independent examiner and AUS public health expert Richard Eccles, who was summoned by the Australia Communications & Media Authority (ACMA) in October 2024.

The ACMA has submitted its first review of BetStop to ministers of the Commonwealth, providing an overview and breakdown of self-exclusion activities across six states and two mainland territories in Australia.

BetStop first came into existence in August 2023 as part of The Gambling Amendment Act, with an aim of applying urgent reforms to the Interactive Gambling Act 2001.

The stewardship of the s..

Sportradar extends integrity deal with FIFA ahead of World Cup

SBC AmericasMarch 4, 2026049 views

FIFA is continuing to ensure the integrity of competition ahead of this year’s World Cup with the extension of a partnership with Sportradar.

On Monday, Sportradar announced that it has extended its integrity services agreement with FIFA for an additional five years. The newly-minted deal runs through 2031 and allows FIFA to leverage the monitoring and investigative services offered by Sportradar.

“The expansion of our integrity agreement with FIFA further strengthens the ability to identify, assess and respond to risks in an increasingly complex global picture,” said Sportradar Executive Vice President of Integrity Services Andreas Krannich. “It underlines both organization’s commitment to fair and clean sport at all levels globally.”

FIFA and Sportradar first teamed up in 2017 to ensure the integrity of soccer matches around the world. In 2026, Sportradar will continue to monitor betting activity for competitions hosted by FIFA and its 211 member associations. FIFA and Sportradar’..

Greece tables direct enforcement bill against black market gambling

A.J. KoehnMarch 4, 2026056 views

Greece will enact sweeping reforms to its criminal and gambling laws to enable the government and authorities to prosecute illegal gambling operators and their respective criminal networks.

The mandate, pledged by Minister of National Economy and Finance Kyriakos Pierrakakis, introduces a draft framework of “interventions required to strengthen the Greek state and economy against the threats of black market gambling”.

Presenting the bill, Pierrakakis stated: “Illegal gambling deprives the Greek state of significant public revenue, undermines licensed businesses and exposes citizens – especially young people – to environments without protection or transparency. This intervention strengthens the institutional shield of the country.”

Kyriakos Pierrakakis

As previously cited by the FM, government data indicates that nearly 800,000 citizens engaged in illegal gambling in 2024, generating an estimated €1.67bn in turnover and depriving the state of approximately €400m in annual revenues.
..

EPIC Global Solutions partners with Onrise to tackle athlete gambling harms

SBC AmericasMarch 4, 2026055 views

EPIC Global Solutions has partnered with athlete mental health platform Onrise in a bid to strengthen and improve gambling harm prevention and treatment services for pro and collegiate athletes and coaches across the U.S.

Onrise is a mental health platform designed specifically with athletes in mind. Through the new partnership, lived-experience harm prevention consultants EPIC will support Onrise’s 250+ peer support experts by providing face-to-face or digital education options for sports organizations to promote awareness of safer relationships with gambling.

The EPIC-Onrise collaboration will be a new service provided as an add-on to supplement the comprehensive Onrise network. Onrise already offers peer support from retired and certified athletes, licensed therapists, psychiatric care and sports performance, delivered through secure one-on-one sessions with flexible scheduling.

“Student-athletes live in a time where gambling and sport intertwine in so many ways, with significant..

TonyBet, Betcity & Kansino contacted by KSA after breaching marketing regulations

A.J. KoehnMarch 4, 2026060 views

TonyBet has once again found itself in hot water after the Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), the Dutch Gaming Authority, contacted the operator due to a marketing incident where advertising was displayed to vulnerable groups.

The Lithuania-based business, whose sponsored adverts on YouTube were pulled by the Irish Advertising Standards Authority (IASA) just over a week ago due to a breach in regulations, encountered a system error and mistakenly sent promotional emails to young adult customers on two separate occasions.

Betcity and Kansino were also in breach of marketing rules, after the former displayed a marketing message through its gaming interface to all players, including young adults, and the latter was found to have displayed gambling advertisements within mobile gaming applications.

Under Dutch gambling regulations, operators are prohibited from targeting vulnerable players, including young adults aged 18-24 and individuals exhibiting signs of risky gambling behaviour.

The rule..

Danish government moves to ban gambling ads from live TV sports broadcasts

A.J. KoehnMarch 4, 2026054 views

Denmark has pressed ahead with proposals to tighten gambling advertising restrictions, expected to come into force between this July and January 2027.

Sponsored by Ane Halsboe-Jørgensen, Danish Minister of Taxation, the reform package aims to limit gambling ads with measures similar to other EU markets like the Netherlands and Bulgaria, including a whistle-to-whistle ban and public placement.

The most prominent change will introduce a time window within which gambling ads will be prohibited from airing on TV and streaming platforms during live sporting events, as well as ten minutes before and after the event.

“The reason why the ban will only apply to live transmissions is that it is only in that context that it is relevant to advertise gambling,” the proposal reads. “For example, it would not be relevant to place a bet during a sports match on, for example, the next yellow card if the match is transmitted late or after the match has ended.”

In-stadium promotions and sports sponso..

NHS: 5% of adults are at risk of problem gambling

iGamingExpertMarch 4, 2026063 views

The latest data from NHS England estimates that 5% of adults in England display at-risk or problem gambling behaviours, whilst less than 1% of adults are currently classified as problem gamblers.
The figures are drawn from the Health Survey for England 2024 (HSE 2024), providing official public health data on health conditions and behavioural factors across the adult population. The survey covers England only and excludes Scotland and Wales.

The HSE tracks trends in health conditions and prevalence related to adult cigarette smoking, use of e-cigarettes (vaping), alcohol consumption, physical activity and gambling participation.

NHS England data places gambling harm within a wider public-health landscape that also includes obesity, high cholesterol, diabetes and mental health conditions among adults.

Audiences are reminded to distinguish between diagnosed health conditions and behavioural risk factors that contribute to or worsen illness.

Under the HSE methodology, gambling harm is..