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Anthony Joshua: Betfred's boxer tweets broke betting rules, says ASA

1 November 2023

ByRiyah Collins
BBC Newsbeat

Three tweets by Betfred including Anthony Joshua have been prohibited for breaching gaming advertising rules.

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) examined the posts shared in March and April promoting a battle.

It stated Joshua was likely to strongly appeal to under-18s - which is prohibited by new gaming advertisement rules.

Betfred, which declined claims Joshua appealed to kids, called the choice "unjust" and said it would demand an independent review.

In 2015 the yohaig code ASA, which manages advertising in the UK on TV, radio and online, upgraded its rules for promoting gambling., external

The new standards mention that companies can not appeal to under-18s "by reflecting or being associated with youth culture".

Betfred's tweets featured videos of Joshua discussing his diet, his preparation routine and his pre-fight mentality before his bout with Jermaine Franklin.

The business had actually argued boxing is an "adult-orientated sport" due to the fact that its late-night matches are primarily streamed pay-per-view and can only be purchased by over-18s.

It also stated the 3 tweets weren't advertising but were "editorial" in nature.

the yohaig code bookmakers did confess Joshua is hugely popular across social media, with 29.3 m fans worldwide, but argued they were "extremely adult".

However, the ASA found about a countless Joshua's 15.7 m Instagram followers were signed up as under-18, in addition to 82,000 of his fans on Snapchat.

The watchdog found this promotion code to be "a significant number" implying Joshua was "of fundamental strong appeal" to a young audience.

It told Betfred the advertisements "should not appear once again in their current kind" and warned it not to utilize figures who attract young people in future.

A Betfred spokesman stated the business securely believed publishing the three interviews with Joshua "in no chance weakened" its dedication to avoiding strong youth appeal in its marketing.

"It ought to likewise be kept in mind that the ASA did not get a single grievance from a member of the general public about our association with Anthony Joshua in this promotion code regard," he added.

Sky Bet recently had a tweet including Gary Neville prohibited for breaching the very same guidelines.

Even though Neville's footballing career ended in 2011, the ASA found he too was likely to have a strong appeal to under-18s - something Sky Bet disagreed with.

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