Dutch gambling regulator Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) has issued a warning to BetMGM over the use of a young role model in advertising.
The warning follows the appearance of Spain and Barcelona football star Lamine Yamal in an online ad for BetMGM, despite him being only 17 years old.
Under Dutch law, online gambling operators are prohibited from using role models in advertising, and from publishing ads that are likely to appeal to vulnerable groups such as minors.
The ad was briefly published on a popular news website by the site’s editors and was discovered by a BetMGM affiliate who then reported the issue to the operator, which had the ad removed. However, the affiliate did not report the issue to the KSA, which it should have according to Dutch law.
The KSA concluded that the ad had the potential to be “very harmful” but acknowledged that BetMGM took swift action to remove the ad. As a result, a warning from the KSA was considered to be sufficient in this case.