UK gambling ads with Lewis Hamilton and Chelsea logo banned over influence on children

Gambling advertisements featuring Formula 1 racing driver Lewis Hamilton and the Chelsea football club logo have been banned in the UK over concerns that they would influence children.

The adverts published by two gambling firms, Kwiff and Betway, were banned after investigations into the complaints, the UK's Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) said on Wednesday.

Betway's YouTube advert, seen in May, featured football fans wearing clothes with the Chelsea badge, while Kwiff's post on X in July promoted the British Grand Prix with Hamilton's picture.

Both betting companies were warned not to include any character who had a strong appeal to viewers under the age of 18.

Separately, ASA also ruled that Betway's advertisement breached its code.

YouTube, according to ASA, was an unsuitable platform for the advert, as advertisers could not guarantee that their content would exclude under-18 viewers.

"It was likely that there was at least a significant number of children who had not used their real date of birth when signing up to YouTube," ASA said.

Betway told ASA it had the contractual right to use Chelsea's logo in its role as the club's official European betting partner.

Betway said that YouTube's own ad policies offered further safeguards against under-18s being exposed to age-restricted content, according to ASA's statement.

Banning the advert could set a "damaging precedent for gambling sponsorships in sport", Betway told the report.