The Netherlands Gambling Authority (KSA) has issued reprimands to Unibet for two separate violations, warning that should shortcomings occur in the future, it will impose “stricter sanctions”.
One breach related to the country’s advertising regulations while the second involved the use of a banned autoplay feature in an online slot game.
For the advertising breach, a coach carrying the Unibet-sponsored cycling team, the Unibet Tietema Rockets, was used to transport the squad in the Netherlands.
The coach was adorned with the Unibet logo and was thus seen to be promoting the betting brand while on the road.
The KSA deemed this as an act of non-targeted advertising, which is prohibited in the country.
Optdeck, which is the licence holder via which the Unibet brand runs, told the KSA it was unaware the coach was being used for other transport and has since provided the team’s vehicles with alternative stickers that don’t contain the Unibet logo.
The coach will consequently be prohibited from road use from 1 July 2025 onwards, the date the Netherlands’ ban on sports sponsorships comes into effect.
With regard to the online slot violation, the KSA was made aware that a casino game on the Unibet platform was using an autoplay feature.
The game in question had enabled a Bonus Buy feature that allowed customers to play with purchased bonuses without having to start a new game.
As the KSA believes the feature helps promote excessive gambling, it is banned within the Netherlands. This feature is banned in the Netherlands due to the KSA ruling it helps promote excessive gambling.
The dialogue between Unibet and the regulator established that the autoplay feature was enabled due to a third-party error, with the function incorrectly activated by the game’s supplier.
The feature was only available to players for two hours, and customers who suffered losses during that period were compensated.
Unibet confirmed it has subsequently taken measures to prevent such errors being made in the future. The title of the game and name of the supplier were not disclosed by the KSA.
As both issues were resolved swiftly, the regulator chose to be lenient with Unibet and only issue a warning.
A KSA statement read: “The KSA has indicated that it is always the provider’s responsibility to guarantee that sponsorship agreements comply with the laws and regulations.
“The KSA emphasised in the conversation that the provider itself is responsible for correctly following laws and regulations, even if there is a collaboration with third parties.
“Because both violations were stopped immediately as soon as they were noticed, the KSA will leave it at a warning for now. If Optdeck makes another mistake in the future, the KSA can impose stricter sanctions.”
Earlier this month, the KSA issued a warning to BetMGM over the use of an underage role model in its advertising materials.
BetMGM had published an online ad featuring Barcelona’s 17-year-old winger Lamine Yamal.
The post KSA issues two warnings to Unibet over advertising and slots violations first appeared on EGR Intel.
Licence holder Optdeck reprimanded for allowing a coach with the Unibet logo to travel through the Netherlands, in addition to briefly permitting an autoplay feature on an online slot game
The post KSA issues two warnings to Unibet over advertising and slots violations first appeared on EGR Intel.