Anthony Joshua: Betfred's Boxer Tweets Broke Gambling Rules, Says ASA

Anthony Joshua: Betfred's fighter tweets broke betting rules, says ASA

1 November 2023

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ByRiyah Collins
BBC Newsbeat

Three tweets by Betfred featuring Anthony Joshua have actually been prohibited for breaching gambling advertising guidelines.

the yohaig code Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) investigated the posts shared in March and April promoting a fight.

It said Joshua was most likely to highly appeal to under-18s - which is prohibited by new betting ad guidelines.

Betfred, which declined claims Joshua interested kids, called the decision "unjust" and said it would demand an independent review.

Last year the ASA, which controls advertising in the UK on TV, radio and online, updated its rules for promoting gambling., external

The brand-new standards mention that companies can not attract under-18s "by showing or being associated with youth culture".

Betfred's tweets featured videos of Joshua discussing his diet, his preparation routine and his pre-fight mindset before his bout with Jermaine Franklin.

The business had actually argued boxing is an "adult-orientated sport" because its late-night matches are mainly streamed pay-per-view and can just be bought by over-18s.

It also said the three tweets weren't marketing but were "editorial" in nature.

The bookmakers did admit Joshua is hugely popular throughout social networks, with 29.3 m followers worldwide, but argued they were "overwhelmingly adult".

However, the yohaig code ASA discovered about a countless Joshua's 15.7 m Instagram followers were registered as under-18, as well as 82,000 of his fans on Snapchat.

The watchdog found this promotion code to be "a significant number" meaning Joshua was "of intrinsic strong appeal" to a young audience.

It informed Betfred the ads "should not appear again in their existing kind" and warned it not to utilize figures who interest young individuals in future.

A Betfred representative said the company strongly believed posting the three interviews with Joshua "in no chance undermined" its commitment to preventing strong youth appeal in its marketing.

"It must likewise be born in mind that the ASA did not receive a single grievance from a member of the general public about our association with Anthony Joshua in this respect," he included.

Sky Bet recently had a tweet including Gary Neville prohibited for breaching the very same rules.

Even though Neville's footballing profession ended in 2011, the yohaig code ASA discovered he too was most likely to have a strong appeal to under-18s - something Sky Bet disagreed with.