ASA Upholds Complaint Against Lottoland

The UK's Advertising Standards Authority has upheld complaints against gaming operator Lottoland after the online ads were found to have violated UK advertising regulations related to gambling.

The offending ads were posted on the Google and Bing search engines. The ads had the verbiage that said, "Lottoland Irish Lottery - Only £2 Here" and "Charity Combo for £2. Win-win charity Lotto + BRC Scratch 50% off. Support UK Charities Here."

The ads were found to have had words like "Lotto", "Irish Lottery" and "US Powerball Lotto", which the regulator said could give readers the impression that they could purchase real lottery tickets, and that Lottoland is an official lottery operator in the country. Lottoland doesn't actually allow players to purchase lottery tickets in other countries, rather it allows players to bet on the outcome of an actual draw. Smaller prizes are paid out of Lottoland's fund, while a large win would draw off of an insurance policy that the operator has taken out.

Lottoland agreed to change its ads, but there have been issues with the ad template that still didn't conform to advertising standards. The ASA has stipulated that the ads cannot air in their current form and future ads must meet all standards in the country.