The Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), the Netherlands’ gambling regulatory body, has made a formal request to online casino operators within the country to disclose comprehensive details about their commercial sponsorship deals. This move comes as the nation prepares to enact a full ban on such agreements.
Operators have been instructed to submit information regarding the initiation dates and the lifespan of their sponsorship contracts, along with a description of the agreements’ specifics.
Despite the implementation of a comprehensive advertising ban in 2023, which eliminated gambling ads from television, radio, print, and public spaces, sponsorships remained untouched until now. The advertising ban, enforced in July, still permitted targeted advertising under certain conditions, including on-demand streaming services, social media, direct mail, and online gaming platforms.
Specific deadlines have been established for the phase-out of these sponsorships: programme and event sponsorships must end by July 1 of the current year, while sports sponsorships have until July 1, 2025. It’s important to note that as of July 1, 2023, no new sponsorship contracts are allowed, with the exemption only applying to agreements signed before this cutoff.
The KSA has set a deadline of March 29, 2024, for operators to comply with this request, a date that has also been confirmed by sources within the industry.
Details demanded by the KSA include the nature of sports sponsorships, whether they involve teams, stadiums, or other entities, and how these sponsorships are visually represented, such as through shirt sponsorships or stadium displays.
For media sponsorships, the regulatory authority is interested in the form of media involved (e.g., TV, radio) and the frequency of advertisement appearances. Event sponsorships require clarification on the event being sponsored, the event’s timing, and the appearance of the advertisements.
Additionally, the KSA seeks to understand if sponsorship contracts allow for direct engagement with fans or followers and whether measures have been included to prevent targeting vulnerable demographics.
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