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ASA has reversed its earlier view on Ladbrokes and Ladbucks. The watchdog now says two ads for the rewards scheme did not cross rules on appeal to under 18s.
Good to Know
Ladbrokes has won its case with the Advertising Standards Authority after complaints over Ladbucks advertising were thrown out. The updated ruling, published today, replaced an earlier June 2025 decision and found that neither the TV ad shown on 17 December 2024 nor the video on demand ad shown on Channel 4 on Demand on 23 December 2024 breached gambling ad rules.
The case started after two members of the public complained in June 2025. They argued that the name Ladbucks and the coin style token imagery could appeal strongly to under 18s because of similarities to Fortnite V Bucks and Roblox Robux. ASA reviewed the matter under both BCAP and CAP gambling advertising codes.
Ladbrokes said Ladbucks was an adult only loyalty reward with no cash value. Tokens were only available to logged in, age verified customers aged 18 and above, and expired each month if unused. The company also said the name came from Ladbrokes plus the common use of bucks as a term for value, not from any effort to copy youth gaming products.
It also pointed to ad placement controls. The TV commercial ran after the watershed, and the VOD version appeared on a platform with parental controls. ASA said those steps helped but were not enough on their own, because younger viewers can still be exposed, so the real test remained whether the creative had strong appeal to minors.
ASA focused on the token design and the Ladbucks name. It accepted there were broad similarities with in game currencies, including round shiny tokens and initials placed in the middle. But it said those overlaps were too limited and too generic to create an obvious comparison.
The watchdog pointed to clear differences as well. Ladbucks tokens used a translucent dark red style within a plain red and white design. Typography stayed simple, without the bright fantasy, cartoon, or character led look often tied to games popular with children.
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.
“Those similar features were generic and did not invite an obvious comparison with the tokens used in Fortnite and Roblox. Therefore, we concluded the ads were not likely to be of strong appeal to under-18s.”
On that basis, ASA found no breach of BCAP Code rule 17.4.5 for the TV ad and no breach of CAP Code rules 16.1 and 16.3.12 for the VOD ad. No further action will follow.
ASA overturned its earlier decision and ruled that the two Ladbucks ads did not breach gambling advertising rules.
Complainants said the Ladbucks name and token imagery looked too similar to youth facing in game currencies such as Fortnite V Bucks and Roblox Robux.
Ladbrokes said Ladbucks was an adult only loyalty reward with no monetary value and was only open to logged in, age verified users aged 18 and above.
Yes, but only at a general level. It said the overlaps were too generic to create an obvious comparison.
It found the styling, colours, and typography were different enough that the ads were not likely to hold strong appeal to under 18s.
The case was reviewed under BCAP and CAP gambling advertising rules, including BCAP 17.4.5 and CAP 16.1 and 16.3.12.