The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) in the UK has overturned its previous ruling against Ladbrokes‘ television advert that was previously determined to be in breach of advertising guidelines. The original ruling was based on an advert that ran on 17 December 2024 and featured ‘Ladbucks’ as an in-app currency promoting a rewards programme.
Two complaints claimed that ladbucks could encourage underage individuals to participate because they were similar to video game currencies.
The ASA said:
We considered that although the name Ladbuck alongside the token’s imagery created some parallels with in-game currencies popular with under-18s, those similarities were not obvious enough to make the ads likely to be of strong appeal to under-18s.
In June 2025, the ASA determined that the advertisement violated both the BCAP Code and the CAP Code. The ASA determined that the use of the term ‘ladbucks’ would not have strong appeal for children.
Legal representatives also support the decision, with Melanie Ellis of Olswang LLP stating that the decision was justified and that the initial ruling was ‘grotesquely unfair.’
Ladbrokes maintained throughout the entire process that ladbucks were only a brand related to currency, whilst the complainants attempted to claim that they were similar to gaming currencies, which was incorrect.
Ultimately, the ASA concluded that the advertisement would not strongly attract children. The decision comes as part of increased scrutiny on the company due to a larger trend, with this being the eighth instance where ASA has investigated complaints regarding advertisements for Ladbrokes.
