Two ads for online betting platform Oddschecker featuring images of footballers Harry Kane and Erling Haaland have been banned for being likely to appeal to under-18s.
The first Instagram post on the oddscheckertv account, seen in November, used a photo of Kane with the caption: “Harry Kane is the most backed player to win the Ballon d’Or in 2026 (32% of bets),” with a trophy emoji.
The second featured a photo of Erling Haaland and the text: “In the last 24 hours, Norway to win the 2026 World Cup is the most-backed bet placed through oddschecker.”
The complainant, a researcher from Bristol University, challenged whether the ads breached gambling advertising rules for featuring individuals who were likely to be of strong appeal to under-18s.
Cyan Blue Odds Ltd, trading as Oddschecker, said the posts were “primarily editorial in nature, rather than ads”.
They explained that this was why they did not include the age disclaimer and social responsibility message that would ordinarily accompany their direct gambling promotions.
The firm said it recognised the heightened risk associated with featuring “top-flight” footballers and so had set the account to a minimum age of 18-plus.
Upholding the complaint, the ASA said a large proportion of under-18s used Instagram and it was likely there was at least a significant number of children who had not used their real date of birth when signing up.
It said it considered both Kane and Haaland “to be a high risk of strong appeal to under-18s”.
The ASA said: “For those reasons, we concluded the ads were irresponsible and breached the code.”
In a separate ruling, the ASA found that an Instagram post from Betway featuring an image of former Arsenal striker Thierry Henry did not break advertising rules because he was unlikely to be of strong appeal to under-18s.
