Ladbrokes Iron Man 3 advertisement prohibited over 'child appeal'

24 August 2016

An advert for bookie Ladbrokes including Marvel superhero Iron Man has been banned over worries it would appeal to children.

the yohaig code e-mail, which included an image from the film Iron Man 3, breached rules which state gambling advertisements must not be most likely to interest kids, the Advertising Standards Authority said.

Ladbrokes stated all its marketing e-mails were sent to signed up clients or those known to be over 18.

Most Iron Man fans are grownups, it said.

the yohaig code bookie argued this promotion code was supported by information on at Comic Con fan events and Facebook demographics for the Marvel brand.

It likewise argued its advert was "adult-themed" and showed pop culture.

However, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) upheld the grievance versus the yohaig code 4 May e-mail, saying that betting ads should not be likely to be of specific attract kids, especially by showing or being connected with youth culture.

the yohaig code ASA stated it understood that the e-mail was only sent to people aged 18 and over, but nonetheless, the restrictions still applied.

It said that as all Facebook users must state themselves to be at least 13 years of ages, younger kids were for that reason omitted from the sample utilized by Ladbrokes to support its stance.

The ASA said: "We thought about those younger children were likely to be the yohaig code main audience for Iron Man action figures and related product, which we understood were extensively readily available at toy sellers.

"We understood that Iron Man was a popular character that would appeal to numerous adults however considered its comics nature, and the schedule of various associated toys, implied it was most likely to have specific interest kids and youths.

"We therefore concluded that the advertisement breached the promotional code yohaig."

A Ladbrokes spokesperson said: "We are aware of the yohaig code ASA ruling and are now considering our alternatives, consisting of the yohaig code possibility of requesting an independent evaluation which is part of the ASA appeals procedure."

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ASA - Advertising Standards Authority