Responsible Gambling

A review of SBC News' coverage of the new SBC Insights / 1xCare report on player education, and why the shift from restriction to engagement matters for operators, regulators and the wider industry.

GamStop registrations surged 16% in H1 2025, led by a 26% increase among under-25s who now form the largest new-user segment, while half of all users have opted for the maximum five-year exclusion period. The scheme's leaders attribute the trend to greater awareness but also flag risks from major sporting events like the World Cup.

During the World Cup, Brazil saw a 588% surge in daily self-exclusion requests, with nearly 1 million enrolled by July 10, driven by concerns over compulsive gambling and data privacy.

Bihar's legislature has unanimously passed a new gambling prohibition bill that replaces the 1867 Public Gambling Act, explicitly covering online platforms, mobile apps, and digital currencies, with penalties ranging from fines to multi-year prison terms and corporate liability provisions.

FEJAR and ESG iGaming have announced a strategic partnership to advance safer gambling by combining FEJAR's addiction support experience with ESG iGaming's global ESG framework, focusing on the Social pillar of sustainability and collaboration among industry stakeholders.

Gordon Moody has secured NHS England funding to continue providing gambling harm treatment in England, easing immediate financial pressure but highlighting ongoing structural challenges in the UK's transition to a new funding framework for support services.

BetBlocker's survey of 1,095 users finds that anonymity is a critical enabler of gambling harm support, with 85% citing it as a central feature and 30% naming fear of stigma as the reason. The report also highlights the growing prevalence of gambling in Africa, where Kenya, South Africa and Nigeria accounted for the most responses.

Gamstop CMO Katie Reynolds-Jones urges social media platforms to intensify action against non-Gamstop casino ads and calls for unified stakeholder alignment to combat the black market, emphasising that consumer protection must remain the core of regulation.

A new survey by More in Common and Ipsos-Ipec finds that 58% of Brazilians associate sports betting with increased match-fixing risk, while 68% support banning betting sponsorships in football. Industry figures call for caution and emphasize responsible advertising over prohibition.

1xCare has appointed an Advisory Committee chaired by Simon Westbury to oversee its responsible gambling programme, while committee member Quirino Mancini separately analyzed regional AI adoption for player safety, highlighting Latin America's proactive stance, Africa's lag, and Europe's fragmentation.

Brazil's licensed betting industry and its main trade associations have welcomed the government's new advertising restrictions requiring mandatory consumer warnings, viewing the rules as a positive step for market integrity and player protection.

Rio de Janeiro has banned betting platform ads in public spaces via Decree No. 58.274, becoming the first Brazilian state capital to do so, while the federal government concurrently issued new ordinances requiring mandatory warning labels and restricting promotional content for licensed betting operators nationwide.