In the spirit of “Bet with your head, not over it,” an advertising slogan in the U.K. designed to warn people of possible gambling problems was found to be ineffective.
The U.K. slogan is “When the fun stops, stop.” However, researchers at the University of Warwick measured the impact of the slogan and found it had no discernible effect on gambling behavior.
The study observed 506 fans of Premier League football who were then invited to place a small wager after viewing gambling ads. Some contained the slogan, while others did not.
The study found that those who had been urged to gamble responsibly ended up betting greater amounts than those who did not.
“The purpose of the ‘When the fun stops, stop’ warning labels is to encourage more responsible gambling behavior. Yet there is hardly any evidence suggesting that such labels are effective,” said Dr. Lukasz Walasek, one of the report’s authors in a press release.
Gillian Wilmot, chairwoman of the slogan’s authors the Senet Group, responded by saying that discouraging all betting was not the purpose of the slogan and instead was meant to have gamblers pause and reflect on their betting.
However, she said the group is considering possible changes to the slogan.
“Last year, we initiated a review of the campaign, informed by a substantial behavioral study, and the new creative will reflect a change to the relative size of the word fun in response to feedback,” Wilmot told the Guardian newspaper.
The slogan is used by bookmakers William Hill, Ladbrokes, Coral and Paddy Power.
