A televised advert from Sky Betting & Gaming promoting its Request a Bet service has been banned by the UK’s Advertising Standards Authority (ASA).
Two complaints said the advert, seen in August, implied those with a good knowledge of sports were likely to experience gambling success and challenged whether the ad was irresponsible.
In the advertisement, presenter Jeff Sterling says: "Forget ‘anything can happen’, in sport anything does happen. But could it be better? With Request a Bet it could. Spark your sports brain and roll all the possibilities into one bet. How big is your sports noggin?"
Responding, Sky Bet explained it was accepted that sport-specific knowledge can, on the whole, increase a customer’s chances of success.
It said its trading team uses knowledge, research and information to set its odds and customers who have access to the same information can predict odds to a similar degree.
The ASA, however, has decided to uphold the complaints, ruling that the advert must not appear in its current form again.
