Recent articles and editorials on sports betting advertising touch on an important topic: youth exposure to gambling promotions. At BCLC, our commitment to protecting minors and promoting safer gambling is unequivocal: we have safeguards in place prohibiting access to our products for anyone under the age of 19. This includes verifying age at the point of sale in retail and on PlayNow.com and requiring ID to enter all B.C. casinos. All of our marketing avoids imagery that could appeal to youth and, every holiday season, we remind adults not to gift lottery products to minors.
But to truly protect minors and players, we believe that gambling advertising must not only be approached with care and responsibility but be considered within the broader system in which they appear. In the past decade alone, the media landscape has radically evolved. Gambling-related content is now embedded in social media feeds, streaming platforms, influencer channels and digital advertorials – reaching audiences of all ages in ways that are often harder to monitor and regulate.
Intensifying this ubiquity is the rise of illegal gambling operators, and those regulated in other Canadian jurisdictions, who advertise aggressively and with minimal oversight outside of their jurisdiction. Their presence has contributed to ambiguity about which gambling options are lawful, safe and secure – not just in B.C., but in many provinces across the country. This is especially consequential given that so many British Columbians have turned their focus to supporting home-based products and services. In this landscape, it’s more important than ever that players know what sites are legal in B.C. and which are not, and have the tools needed to make informed choices about gambling.
That’s why BCLC runs marketing and education campaigns about BCLC being the only entity permitted to operate commercial gambling in B.C. and why we continually invest in gambling literacy through our GameSense program, which aims to meet players wherever they are – in casinos, on PlayNow.com and on social media. In fact, BCLC’s GameSense brand is licensed out to and leveraged by operators across North America, including big names like BetMGM and MGM Resorts International.
Bolstering this work, our player health, marketing and communications teams all work together to deliver informational messaging about safer gambling through a variety of channels. We design educational entertainment to help players understand key concepts like odds, randomness and budgeting. And we’ve tailored campaigns to specific audiences, like younger male sports bettors and older adults, recognizing that different groups face different risks.
But education alone isn’t enough. Research shows that individuals don’t want exposure to more gambling advertising. We must also prioritize player protection as well to help people make informed decisions. Players who access legal, regulated gambling sites – like PlayNow.com – benefit from this dual built-in protection, because these platforms strictly adhere to rigorous marketing standards and provincial regulation. And it’s why BCLC calls on the industry for stronger federal enforcement tools to counter the reach of illegal and unregulated gambling operators – who aren’t subject to the same standards – in our respective jurisdictions.
It’s also why BCLC supports Senator Marty Deacon’s bill which would mandate a national framework on advertising for sports betting – making play healthy and safer for players across the country.
In this, we invite all of our industry partners, regulators and governments to work together to strengthen enforcement, enhance literacy and ensure that advertising supports the health of our players, not undermines it.
At BCLC, we envision a future where our players demonstrate the safest gambling behaviours in the world. Achieving that vision requires a coordinated approach: reducing exposure to harmful advertising, increasing access to safer gambling information and enforcing shared standards across all platforms.
Together, we can build a safer, more accountable gambling environment to better protect everyone.
