Spain Moves to Limit Gambling Ads With Influencers and Celebrities
Spain is preparing stricter rules for gambling advertising as the government looks to tighten control over how betting brands promote their services online. The country’s gambling regulator, the DGOJ, has opened a public consultation on several new measures focused on player protection.
One of the main ideas is limiting the use of celebrities, streamers, and influencers in gambling ads. Authorities also want tougher rules for welcome bonuses and other promotions used to attract new users. On top of that, Spain may reduce how often gambling websites appear in Google search results unless people are directly searching for betting-related terms.
The consultation will stay open until June 22. Players, gambling companies, and industry groups can all share feedback before the government makes a final decision.
According to the DGOJ, the current gambling rules are outdated and no longer fully match today’s digital market. Officials say online gambling has changed a lot over the past 15 years, especially with the rise of social media and mobile betting apps.
Spain is also working on other gambling reforms. One proposal includes a system that could detect risky gambling behavior using real player data from licensed operators. Authorities believe this tool could improve problem gambling detection rates by around 10%.
Another planned change would force gambling ads to include responsible gambling warnings. Some of these notices may show real statistics, including how many players lose money.
