Racing lobby wants TV ads ban relaxed across paid-for channels

● Gambling Bill plans watershed, but industry fears financial impact will hurt Irish sector

Horse racing officials have called for a 24-hour gambling advert ban on mainstream television — but asked for subscription channels to be excluded. Provisions in the Government’s new Gambling Bill will prevent betting adverts appearing on all television, radio and on-demand platforms between 5.30am and 9pm.

Racing channels say lost advertising revenue could make it unviable to broadcast Irish race meetings.

Horse Racing Ireland (HRI), the sport’s governing body, believes this would have a detrimental financial impact on the industry.

It wants the watershed proposal replaced with a total ban with measures to give subscription services a derogation.

HRI claimed it would be beneficial for teenagers if a broader 24-hour ban was in place on mainstream television, radio and digital platforms.

Proposals sent to Law Reform Minister James Browne by HRI chairman Nicky Hartery last September included a call for betting activity to only be advertised on subscription channels where the Gambling Regulatory Authority (GRA) is satisfied a certain percentage of the audience is aged 18 or over. A percentage was not outlined in Mr Hartery’s letter.

This weekend, the HRI said such a figure should be determined by the GRA.

“In a September meeting we were asked to give a guide figure and suggested a very high bar, in the 80-90pc region,” a spokesman added.

The spokesman said there is a similar international precedent because the American Gaming Organisation’s code for responsible marketing determines sports betting advertising and marketing should be placed in media where at least 73.6pc of the audience is reasonably expected to be old enough to gamble.

Mr Hartery’s correspondence with the minister, released under Freedom of Information, suggested derogations on HRI’s proposed advertising ban could also be granted in cases where adults “have specifically opted in to receive gambling advertising on subscription only channels”.

He said the HRI proposals were drawn up independent of racing channels but shared with them later.

Mr Hartery said broadcasters would have to work towards finding a way to verify the makeup of their audiences and develop methods for adult viewers to consent to adverts.

The Government has indicated it would not be legally possible to grant racing channels a derogation, but Mr Hartery believes exemptions could also be applied for other broadcasters and sports.

“This proposal does not grant any one channel, one sport or one industry a monopoly on selling gambling advertising. Nor does it in any way ‘open the floodgates’,” he said.

“This proposal squeezes all of gambling advertising content — broadcast or digital — into a very tightly restricted and heavily regulated space and where the

GRA will have ongoing powers to use the levers given to it under this legislation.”

He cited a 2020 Health Research Board survey that pointed to links between drug and alcohol use and problem gambling. It linked heightened vulnerabilities to night-time hours.

“We believe that a 9pm watershed will have limited beneficial impact on most teenage children who will then be exposed to a likely increased intensity of gambling advertising throughout the evening,” Mr Hartery wrote.

A HRI spokesman said the number of young people watching English Premier League football matches should also be considered in light of the Government’s proposed watershed.

This proposal does not in any way ‘open the floodgates’

“Every Premier League match with an evening kick-off will have gambling advertising on the broadcast at halftime and full-time, and those games will have considerably more young people watching post the 9pm watershed, than subscription channels — including racing — will have during the afternoon,” he said.

“‘Turning on’ advertising only after 9pm with the obvious late-at-night activity around casino-style betting products, did not sit well with us.”

The Department of Justice said it recognises “the horse racing industry generates valued employment and is a source of entertainment to many”. It said the bill is a public health measure aimed at protecting young and vulnerable people from harmful gambling. A spokesman said the watershed proposed by the Government does not impede the broadcasting of Irish sport.

“Neither will the legislation prohibit the broadcast of sports from other jurisdictions. Subscription channels will be free to broadcast any form of non-gambling advertising on any broadcast into Ireland.”