Children in the UK are exposed to fewer television gambling advertisements than they were five years ago, according to an Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) report.
The report shows children saw, on average, 2.8 gambling ads per week, equating to one ad for every five seen by adults in 2017.
The ASA’s report suggests that, between 2008 and 2017, children’s exposure to gambling ads increased by 25% from an average of 2.2 per week in 2008 to 2.8 ads per week in 2017.
These results reflect changing advertisement laws, with 2008 being the first full year in which ads for betting were allowed on television.
However, exposure to gambling ads peaked in 2013 at 4.4 ads per week, the last year before the UK updated advertisement law, and has dropped since.
On average, advertisements for gambling made up less than 2% of the ads children saw each year between 2008 and 2017, breaking down to approximately 65.2 seconds per week last year.
ASA CEO Guy Parker said: "Protecting children has always been at the heart of our regulation. These findings show that, in recent years, children’s exposure to TV ads for alcohol, gambling and food and soft drink products high in fat, salt or sugar is declining."
