Claim - Advertisements for online sports betting should be banned

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por Brad McAllister

Claim - Advertisements for online sports betting should be banned

(but) Banning ads harms the gambling industry’s economy

(however) Ontario’s average gambler spends $283/month—3x the "safe" threshold (Lewis, 2024) causing negative externalities

(however) Social costs (e.g., family strain, mortgage defaults) far outweigh industry losses

(but) Parental controls can limit youth exposure

(however) Youth see 8.5 minutes of ads during Maple Leafs games (Smith, 2024)

(however) Ads are pervasive: 2.8 gambling references per minute during live sports (Lewis, 2024)

(but) Ads don’t necessarily cause increased gambling problems

(however) The precautionary principle justifies action given credible evidence of harm, even without absolute causality (e.g., tobacco ad bans)

(but) Bans push users to illegal sites

(however) Legal markets harm vulnerable groups (e.g., Ontarians spend 3% of income on betting, exceeding safe thresholds)

(however) Unregulated sites like Ontario’s iGaming market already thrive, proving current rules fail

(because) The current regulatory framework is ineffective

8% of ads appeal to minors, violating guidelines (University of Bristol, 2024)

81% of gambling ads are organic/unlabeled; 75% lack responsible gaming messages (University of Bristol, 2024)

Four betting brands post 1,700+ ads daily on social media, blurring lines between entertainment and addiction (University of Bristol, 2024)

(because) They target and harm youth

Ads exploit cognitive biases (e.g., "representativeness heuristic") to distort decision-making (Lopez-Gonzalez et al., 2017)

Sports broadcasts air 8.5 minutes of gambling ads per game (CTV News, 2023)

Ads saturate youth spaces: 96% see TV ads, 93% see internet ads (Monaghan et al., 2008)

42% of youth want to gamble after seeing ads; 61% fantasize about winnings (Monaghan et al., 2008)

10% of minors gamble online, with 26% at risk for gambling disorder (Smith, 2025)

Children associate sports teams with betting brands (e.g., Bet365) and learn gambling mechanics through ads (CTV News, 2023)

(because) They increase risks to public health

A 10% increase in gambling spending raises mortgage default risk by 97.5% (Smith, 2025)

Problem gamblers harm 6–8 others; 37% commit intimate partner violence (Smith, 2025)

In-play betting and "skill-enhancing" ads exploit cognitive biases, accelerating addiction (Lopez-Gonzalez et al., 2017)

Over 300,000 Canadians are at "severe/moderate" risk of harm, with ads triggering problem gamblers (CTV News, 2023)

Gambling ads correlate with increased gambling behavior (r = 0.24), mirroring alcohol/tobacco ad impacts (Bouguettaya et al., 2020)