ASA reprimands Optival affiliate site over self-exclusion search ad
The Advertising Standards Authority has told the operator of bestbookiesandbettingsites.co.uk that betting ads must not appear against searches linked to self-exclusion.
The Advertising Standards Authority has reprimanded a UK betting affiliate site after a paid search advert appeared when a user searched for "self exclusion bookies", SBC News reported.
The ad ran on bestbookiesandbettingsites.co.uk, the trading name of Optival, and promoted a "Top 15 Betting Sites UK" comparison alongside wording offering an "Exclusive First Bet Bonus" and what it called the "Best Welcome Bonus Offers by UK's Top Online Sports Betting Brands for 2025!".
The ASA received a complaint showing the advert had surfaced against that specific search term. In its ruling, the regulator said the phrase was likely to indicate someone looking for help to avoid gambling services rather than someone shopping for a new bookmaker.
The ASA's statement said such consumers were likely to include vulnerable people trying to manage or reduce their exposure to gambling advertising, and that in that context an ad pushing welcome bonuses was not appropriate to appear in response to the search.
The regulator has ordered Optival not to let the ad reappear against searches such as "self exclusion bookies" again, and has told the firm to ensure its search advertising is responsibly targeted more broadly.
Optival has told the ASA it is adding further negative keyword exclusions to its campaigns, aiming to stop searches related to self-exclusion and similar terms from triggering its ads in future, as well as reviewing current campaigns for the same issue.
The case lands amid broader concern in the regulated gambling sector, the treatment and harm-reduction field, and the Gambling Commission about offshore and unlicensed operators targeting vulnerable UK consumers, including sites that market themselves as accepting customers who have signed up to the Gamstop self-exclusion scheme.
Notably, the ASA's ruling addressed only the risk that a vulnerable person might see an unwanted betting ad while trying to avoid gambling. It did not address the alternative possibility raised by the case: that a self-excluded customer might be using such a search specifically to find bookmakers willing to let them bet despite their exclusion.