{"id":10690,"date":"2026-04-28T22:58:48","date_gmt":"2026-04-28T22:58:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/casino-online-best.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/28\/gambling-ads-on-meta-reached-2-3-times-more-men-than-women-in-ireland\/"},"modified":"2026-04-28T22:58:48","modified_gmt":"2026-04-28T22:58:48","slug":"gambling-ads-on-meta-reached-2-3-times-more-men-than-women-in-ireland","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/casino-online-best.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/28\/gambling-ads-on-meta-reached-2-3-times-more-men-than-women-in-ireland\/","title":{"rendered":"Gambling Ads On Meta Reached 2.3 Times More Men Than Women In Ireland"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<p>A University of Cambridge-led <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cam.ac.uk\/research\/news\/gambling-ads-on-social-media-reach-more-than-twice-as-many-men-as-women\">report<\/a> has found a clear gender gap in gambling advertising on Meta platforms in Ireland, with ads reaching far more male accounts than female accounts before the new Irish gambling ad rules began.<\/p>\n<hr>\n<p><em><strong>Good to Know<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em><strong>Gambling ads reached 12.7 million male Meta accounts and 5.5 million female accounts in Ireland.<\/strong><\/em><\/li>\n<li><em><strong>The study reviewed 411 ads from 88 Ireland-licensed gambling operators between March 2024 and February 2025.<\/strong><\/em><\/li>\n<li><em><strong>The sample came before key parts of the Gambling Regulation Act 2024 took effect in March 2025.<\/strong><\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr>\n<h2>Young Men Drove Most Gambling Ad Reach<\/h2>\n<p>Gambling ads on Meta platforms in Ireland reached more than twice as many men as women, according to new research led by the University of Cambridge.<\/p>\n<p>The study used Meta ad data published under the European Union Digital Services Act. Researchers from the Academic Forum for the Study of Gambling reviewed 411 ads from 88 licensed gambling operators in Ireland. The sample covered users aged 18 to 65+ across March 2024 to February 2025.<\/p>\n<p>Male accounts made up the larger share by a wide margin. The ads reached 12,690,245 male Meta accounts, compared with 5,458,438 female accounts. Total exposure reached 18,389,653 unique accounts across the period.<\/p>\n<div class=\"main-org-3-item-ins box-100 relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"space-org-3-items box-100 relative\">\n<div class=\"box-100 space-org-3-item relative border-tb mt-1 \">\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-ins box-100 relative\">\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-logo box-25 relative\">\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-logo-ins box-100 text-center relative\">\n<div class=\"space-org-logo-title-box box-100 text-left relative\">\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-logo-box box-25 relative img-radius\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/igaming.org\/site\/mirax-casino\/\" title=\"Visit Site\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"><br \/>\n\t\t<amp-img alt=\"Mirax Casino\" src=\"https:\/\/igaming.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Mirax-Casino.png.webp\" width=\"50\" height=\"50\" layout=\"fixed\"><br \/>\n\t\t<\/amp-img><br \/>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-logo-title box-25 relative py-10\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/igaming.org\/site\/mirax-casino\/\" title=\"Mirax Casino\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">Mirax Casino<\/a>\n\t\t<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-terms box-25 relative\">\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-terms-ins box-100 text-center relative\">\n\t\t<strong>350% or 5BTC + <strong>150 Spins!<\/strong><\/strong><br \/>\n\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"pt-1\">New players only. Exclusive Welcome Bonus of 350% + 150 Free Spins\n<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-rating box-25 relative mb-10\">\n<div class=\"rating-box text-center box-100  relative\">\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-rating-box relative\">\n<div class=\"stars\"><span class=\"star on\"><\/span><span class=\"star on\"><\/span><span class=\"star on\"><\/span><span class=\"star on\"><\/span><span class=\"star on\"><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"space-org-rating-notice relative\">Casino<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>\t\n\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-button box-25 relative\">\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-button-ins box-100 text-center relative\">\n\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/igaming.org\/site\/mirax-casino\/\" title=\"Visit Site\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">\tVisit Site<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Only 91 ads, or 22%, directly targeted men only. None targeted women only. Most ads, 74%, carried an \u201cAll\u201d gender setting, yet delivery still leaned heavily toward men.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Dr Elena Petrovskaya<\/strong>, lead author of the report and a faculty member at the Cambridge Department of Computer Science and Technology, said:<\/p>\n<p><em>\u201cNot that many adverts directly targeted men to begin with.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>\u201cBut even when adverts were set to reach all genders, they still reached that very vulnerable group of young men.<\/em><\/p>\n<div class=\"main-org-3-item-ins box-100 relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"space-org-3-items box-100 relative\">\n<div class=\"box-100 space-org-3-item relative border-tb mt-1 \">\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-ins box-100 relative\">\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-logo box-25 relative\">\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-logo-ins box-100 text-center relative\">\n<div class=\"space-org-logo-title-box box-100 text-left relative\">\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-logo-box box-25 relative img-radius\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/igaming.org\/site\/mirax-casino\/\" title=\"Visit Site\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"><br \/>\n\t\t<amp-img alt=\"Mirax Casino\" src=\"https:\/\/igaming.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Mirax-Casino.png.webp\" width=\"50\" height=\"50\" layout=\"fixed\"><br \/>\n\t\t<\/amp-img><br \/>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-logo-title box-25 relative py-10\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/igaming.org\/site\/mirax-casino\/\" title=\"Mirax Casino\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">Mirax Casino<\/a>\n\t\t<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-terms box-25 relative\">\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-terms-ins box-100 text-center relative\">\n\t\t<strong>350% or 5BTC + <strong>150 Spins!<\/strong><\/strong><br \/>\n\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"pt-1\">New players only. Exclusive Welcome Bonus of 350% + 150 Free Spins\n<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-rating box-25 relative mb-10\">\n<div class=\"rating-box text-center box-100  relative\">\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-rating-box relative\">\n<div class=\"stars\"><span class=\"star on\"><\/span><span class=\"star on\"><\/span><span class=\"star on\"><\/span><span class=\"star on\"><\/span><span class=\"star on\"><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"space-org-rating-notice relative\">Casino<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>\t\n\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-button box-25 relative\">\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-button-ins box-100 text-center relative\">\n\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/igaming.org\/site\/mirax-casino\/\" title=\"Visit Site\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">\tVisit Site<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><em>\u201cIt shows that if companies just put ads on social media, they are still reaching young men \u2013 the group we know from other research is most at risk of gambling harms.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p>The age split added another layer. Accounts aged 25 to 34 made up the largest group, with 6,246,408 reached, or 33.9%. Accounts aged 35 to 44 followed with 4,701,885 reached, or 25.5%. Together, users aged 25 to 44 accounted for almost 60% of the audience.<\/p>\n<p>A single Betfair ad reached 1,320,179 unique accounts, equal to about 26% of the population of Ireland. The five most viewed ads reached 3,688,413 accounts combined.<\/p>\n<p>Researchers said sports-led creative, especially football content, likely helped push delivery toward male users. They also pointed to Meta ad systems, where algorithmic delivery can shape the final audience even when brands choose broad settings.<\/p>\n<p>Ireland already has high gambling participation. The report cites lifetime gambling engagement of 64.5%, while 3.3% of the population falls into the high-risk gambling category. Men aged 25 to 34 show the highest risky gambling rate at 1.3%, compared with 0.2% for women in the same age group.<\/p>\n<p><em>\u201cEven in a country like Ireland with a small population, the number of accounts these ads reached was dizzying,\u201d<\/em> said <strong>Petrovskaya<\/strong>.<em> \u201cWe looked at Ireland as a case study of an environment where a modern gambling regulatory framework had not yet been adopted.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<div class=\"main-org-3-item-ins box-100 relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"space-org-3-items box-100 relative\">\n<div class=\"box-100 space-org-3-item relative border-tb mt-1 \">\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-ins box-100 relative\">\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-logo box-25 relative\">\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-logo-ins box-100 text-center relative\">\n<div class=\"space-org-logo-title-box box-100 text-left relative\">\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-logo-box box-25 relative img-radius\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/igaming.org\/site\/katsubet-casino\/\" title=\"Visit Site\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"><br \/>\n\t\t<amp-img alt=\"Katsubet\" src=\"https:\/\/igaming.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Katsubet.png.webp\" width=\"50\" height=\"50\" layout=\"fixed\"><br \/>\n\t\t<\/amp-img><br \/>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-logo-title box-25 relative py-10\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/igaming.org\/site\/katsubet-casino\/\" title=\"Katsubet\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">Katsubet<\/a>\n\t\t<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-terms box-25 relative\">\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-terms-ins box-100 text-center relative\">\n\t\t<strong>5BTC or 111% + 111 Free Spins!<\/strong><br \/>\n\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"pt-1\">New players only. Exclusive 111% Welcome Bonus  + 111 Free Spins<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-rating box-25 relative mb-10\">\n<div class=\"rating-box text-center box-100  relative\">\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-rating-box relative\">\n<div class=\"stars\"><span class=\"star on\"><\/span><span class=\"star on\"><\/span><span class=\"star on\"><\/span><span class=\"star on\"><\/span><span class=\"star on\"><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"space-org-rating-notice relative\">Casino<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>\t\n\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-button box-25 relative\">\n<div class=\"space-org-3-item-button-ins box-100 text-center relative\">\n\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/igaming.org\/site\/katsubet-casino\/\" title=\"Visit Site\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">\tVisit Site<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Ireland has since changed the rules. The Gambling Regulation Act 2024 took effect in March 2025 and created the Gambling Regulatory Authority. The law introduced tighter advertising controls, including a ban on gambling ads across broadcast and on-demand audiovisual services from 5.30am to 9.00pm. For social media and video platforms, gambling ads can only target users who follow a licensed gambling operator.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Dr Deidre Leahy from MTU in Cork, a co-author of the report<\/strong>, said:<\/p>\n<p><em>\u201cThis research provides valuable insights that establish a baseline for the reach of gambling advertising on social media in Ireland before the introduction of a regulatory framework.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>\u201cThis baseline will be essential for assessing the impact of reforms under the Gambling Regulation Act.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p>The post <a href=\"https:\/\/igaming.org\/casino-news\/gambling-ads-on-meta-reached-2-3-times-more-men-than-women-in-ireland\/\">Gambling Ads On Meta Reached 2.3 Times More Men Than Women In Ireland<\/a> appeared first on <a href=\"https:\/\/igaming.org\/\">iGaming.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A University of Cambridge-led report has found a clear gender gap in gambling advertising on Meta platforms in Ireland, with ads reaching far more male accounts than female accounts before the new Irish gambling ad rules began. Good to Know Gambling ads reached 12.7 million male Meta accounts and 5.5 million female accounts in Ireland. [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10690","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry"],"blocksy_meta":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/casino-online-best.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10690","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/casino-online-best.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/casino-online-best.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/casino-online-best.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/casino-online-best.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10690"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/casino-online-best.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10690\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/casino-online-best.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10690"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/casino-online-best.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10690"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/casino-online-best.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10690"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}