The British gambling industry continues to reduce its advertising investment, according to the Gambling Advertising and Sponsorship Report published in January 2026, prepared by the professional services firm Alvarez & Marsal for the UK Betting and Gaming Council . The study documents a downward trend during 2024 that places the sector under new political scrutiny following the implementation of significant tax increases.
Read also: Argentina reinforces responsible gaming with federal prevention campaigns
Sustained decline in advertising participation
Independent analysis shows that gambling advertising spend by licensed operators accounted for 2.7% of the UK’s total advertising market in 2024, a decrease from 3% recorded in 2023. This reduction is part of a trend that has remained constant since 2021, with a compound annual decline rate of 1.7% compared to the 2021-2022 period.
Total advertising and sponsorship spend by Great Britain’s licensed gambling and betting operators reached £1.15 billion during the period between October 2023 and September 2024. This figure is based on raw advertising data submitted by BGC members and covers activity across the British regulated market.
BGC Chief Executive Grainne Hurst stated that the analysis shows how advertising for gambling by licensed operators continues to decline, while spending is increasingly focused on safer gambling messages and consumer protections. However, she warned of the contrast with illegal operators, who advertise aggressively online without guarantees, age checks, or consumer protection, posing a huge risk to consumers.
Spend distribution and broadcast times
Digital channels absorbed the largest share of advertising spend, with £768 million, equivalent to 66.8% of the total, allocated to online advertising formats. Broadcast advertising accounted for £341 million, representing 29.6% of total spend.
Television advertising remained concentrated mainly in evening hours, with 72% of TV ads broadcast after the 9 pm watershed, despite exemptions allowing bingo and limited sports betting advertising before that time. This self-restriction reflects the industry’s commitment to protecting vulnerable audiences, particularly children.
The £30 million reduction in television advertising was the main factor contributing to the decline in overall gambling advertising spend during the period analyzed. In addition to the £1.15 billion in advertising, operators spent an additional £138 million on sponsorship during the same period.
Read also: Super Bowl LX consolidates the growth of legal betting in the United States
Economic impact of regulated advertising
Beyond the direct impact on consumers, the report outlines the substantial economic footprint of regulated gambling advertising on the British economy. The authors suggest that advertising and sponsorship activity supports an average of 9,900 jobs across the advertising, media, and creative supply chain.
Indirect gross value added linked to these activities was estimated at £506 million, spread across contracted services and wider supply chains. Staff costs in marketing amounted to £84 million, covering around 1,400 full-time positions.
The authors note that these estimates exclude induced economic effects, a limitation that likely underestimates the total contribution to British GDP. Induced effects represent the secondary impacts on the economy resulting from the subsequent spending of employees and shareholders of the companies in question, and those in the supply chain, as a result of the income they receive.
Balance between regulation and commercial viability
The Alvarez & Marsal report published in January 2026 represents an attempt by the industry to provide empirical evidence in a debate often characterized by ideological stances. The data suggests that the regulated sector took concrete steps during 2024 to reduce its advertising footprint and increase responsible gambling messaging.
However, the current political context, with tax increases already implemented in 2025 and ongoing calls for further advertising restrictions, raises fundamental questions for policymakers: how to strike the appropriate balance between taxation and gambling regulation. Clearly, too little regulation, particularly concerning higher-harm products like online casino games, can lead to consumer harm. However, too much taxation can also have a negative impact on both end-users and public coffers, with online gambling consumers moving away from the UK regulated market and towards the black market.
The coming months of 2026 will be crucial in determining whether the UK can maintain a vibrant, responsible, and well-regulated gambling sector, or if conflicting pressures will push more consumers towards the grey area of unlicensed operators. The BGC report provides an important benchmark, but the debate over the future of gambling advertising in the UK is far from settled.
Read also: Operators warn that new player protection rules in Finland could strengthen the illegal market
