Pro Leagues, Media Entities Form Coalition for Responsible Sports Betting Advertising

Professional sports leagues such as the NFL and NBA, alongside NBC Universal and FOX, have joined the fight to make operators change the way sports betting is promoted.

Major professional sports leagues and a pair of media entities are now partnering to bring the responsible marketing effort more to the forefront and force operators to alter some of their practices. 

The Coalition for Responsible Sports Betting Advertising, which formally announced its creation Wednesday, includes the NFL, NBA, Major League Baseball, NHL, WNBA, NASCAR, and Major League Soccer. Media entities NBC Universal and FOX are also members of a coalition that designed six principles it plans to implement and maintain for consumer protection: 

• Sports betting should be marketed only to adults of legal betting age.
• Sports betting advertising should not promote irresponsible or excessive gambling or degrade the consumer experience.
• Sports betting advertisements should not be misleading.
• Sports betting advertisements should be in good taste.
• Publishers should have appropriate internal reviews of sports betting advertising.
• Publishers should review consumer complaints pertaining to sports betting advertising.

Since sports betting was legalized in the U.S. in 2018, professional leagues have formed partnerships with online sports betting sites such as FanDuel, DraftKings, and BetMGM, among others. Now, they're asking for better marketing techniques from many of the companies they're in business with. 

DraftKings has shared its thoughts since the announcement:

“DraftKings is committed to advertising our sportsbook product in a safe and responsible way, and we adhere to all principles in the American Gaming Association’s Responsible Marketing Code for Sports Wagering," said Stephanie Sherman, chief marketing officer for DraftKings, in a statement. "We commend the Coalition for Responsible Sports Betting Advertising for bringing sports leagues and media entities together to establish similar principles and we look forward to working with the coalition in our shared effort to engage with fans responsibly.”

Leading the charge

The Coalition for Responsible Sports Betting Advertising is being led by NFL vice president of public policy and government affairs Jonathan Nabavi.

"As the legalization of sports betting spreads nationwide, we feel it is critical to establish guardrails around how sports betting should be advertised to consumers across the United States," the coalition said in a released statement. "Each member of the coalition feels a responsibility to ensure sports betting advertising is not only targeted to an appropriate audience, but also that the message is thoughtfully crafted and carefully delivered."

AGA support

The American Gaming Association, which brings leaders from various gambling platforms together to help solve issues in the industry, recently altered its responsible marketing code and said Wednesday it's in full support of the Coalition for Responsible Sports Betting. 

“We applaud the responsible advertising commitments announced today by many of America’s biggest players in sports entertainment,” AGA vice president Casey Clark said. “Closely mirroring commitments already made by AGA members through our recently updated Responsible Marketing Code for Sports Wagering, these efforts reflect a shared prioritization of responsible gaming and consumer protection. 

“Building a sustainable legal wagering market requires alignment from the entire sports betting ecosystem, and today’s announcement is another important step.”

Legislators fight back

On a list of growing issues in legal sports betting states are advertising campaigns targeted at a younger audience, especially those on campuses where many students are under the legal betting age. 

The New York Gaming Commission put rules in place in February to keep operators from advertising to people under 21. Last month, New Jersey legislators introduced one bill that would make it illegal for colleges and universities to partner with sportsbooks for marketing purposes. 

Ohio fined DraftKings and Barstool in December for violating the Buckeye State’s advertisement policies. 

Nationally, New York Congressman Paul Tonko introduced the Betting on Our Future Act, which is designed to make it illegal to market to “children, people in recovery, and other vulnerable populations.”