Seven American professional sports leagues are joining two television networks to form a coalition to help ensure a responsible approach to sports betting advertising, the partners announced in a joint statement Wednesday.
The National Football League, Major League Baseball, Major League Soccer, NASCAR, National Basketball Association, Women’s National Basketball Association and National Hockey League will partner with NBCUniversal and FOX to form the Coalition for Responsible Sports Betting Advertising.
The alliance is a voluntary partnership between leagues and media outlets committed to ensuring that sports betting advertising meets certain guidelines.
“As the legalization of sports betting expands across the country, we believe it is critical to set the bar on how sports betting should be advertised to U.S. consumers,” the coalition said in a joint statement. . “Each member of the coalition feels a responsibility to ensure that sports betting advertising is not only targeted to the right audience, but that the message is carefully crafted and delivered.”
The coalition aims to ensure that sports betting is only marketed to adults of legal age and must not promote irresponsible or excessive gambling. Advertisements must not be misleading and must be in good taste.
In addition, publishers should have adequate internal review of these ads and review consumer complaints.
“FOX and FOX Sports are proud to be founding members of this broad and important coalition,” said Mike Mulvihill, Vice President of Strategy and Analytics for FOX Sports. “As America’s leader in live sports, we are committed to providing fans with an ethical and responsible engagement in sports betting, keeping the integrity of the games and our broadcasts at the forefront at all times.”
David Highhill, the NFL’s managing director of sports betting, added: “Legalized sports betting gives fans another way to engage with their favorite sports, but just as we need to support problem prevention and gambling resources, we also need to consider how sports betting is presented and advertised to consumers, and this coalition should go a long way in helping that cause.”
The alliance is committed to implementing and maintaining consumer protection policies around sports betting advertising.
“Adding this coalition’s work on advertising to our efforts to promote responsible gaming and address problematic gaming challenges will result in more thoughtful planning and implementation across the board,” he said. Kenny Gersh, Vice President of MLB Media & Business Development.