While sports betting is becoming more accessible in the U.S., Italy is cracking down on sports betting advertising. The nation’s Decreto Dignita, recently was approved by the Council of Ministers, will take effect January 1, 2019, banning all advertising of gambling-related products and services, and prohibiting companies that provide those products and services from sponsoring sports clubs. Existing contracts will be honored and the national lottery will be excluded.
In a statement, the Lega Serie A, Italy’s top soccer league, said, “The Lega Serie A is following with extreme worry the developments of the Decreto Legge Dignita and the impact on Italian football of rules which ban advertising from betting firms. In highlighting the clear disparity compared to other countries in Europe and the world, where such bans don’t exist, and showing the negative consequences of such a measure, the Lega Serie A points out that in the 2017-18 season 12 top-flight clubs had a partnership agreement with companies from the betting sector,” more than half of the top-tier Serie A clubs.
The league claimed football clubs would lose millions of Euros in sponsorships. Additional money could be lost as TV companies would not be able to sell advertising slots at top rates to gambling firms during games.
Serie A officials noted, “In the Premier League, identified by everyone as the benchmark for its ability to generate resources, 45 percent of clubs have a gaming firm as a shirt sponsor and in all the stadiums, on screens pitchside, there is advertising from betting companies. Prohibiting the firms from this sector to invest in advertising in our country would bring competitive disadvantages to Italian clubs, directing abroad advertising budgets meant for our teams.”
The European Gaming and Betting Association, representing the leading privately owned European online betting and gaming operators, pointed out gambling operators contribute about $140 million annually to sponsor sports teams and leagues in Italy. EGBA Secretary General Maarten Haijer stated, “We would also question the practicality of introducing a total ban on advertising as a result of the cross-border nature of the internet and television. Italian citizens will continue to see gambling advertising, except that those ads will advertise websites that are not licensed in Italy.”
EGBA officials said a total ban is “counter-productive” to protecting consumers. “One of the important benefits of gambling advertising is that it directs Italian customers towards those gambling operators who are licensed to operate and comply with the rules in Italy,” Haijer said.
However, Genoa President Enrico Preziosi said the decree would actually help illegal betting. “It’s madness. It would be a huge blow for us and wouldn’t even resolve the problem it wants to face. They don’t understand the devastating effects there will be on football, where thousands of people work.”
According to official statistics, $120 billion was spent on gambling in Italy in 2017, up 6 percent over 2016 and 142 percent over 2007. Also, nearly 1 million people have some form of gambling addiction and about half of them are unemployed.
Lega Serie A officials said they want to discuss amendments to the decree with government leaders, and hope solutions can be found to minimize gambling and addiction problems.
