How to stop gambling marketing

Gambling companies licensed in Great Britain need your consent before they send you marketing, and since May 2025 online operators have had to let you choose exactly which products and channels you hear about. Here is how the rules work, how to switch marketing off, and what to do if it keeps coming.

The consent rule

Under the Gambling Commission’s social responsibility code 5.1.11 (opens in a new tab), licensees may only send direct electronic marketing, such as emails and texts, with your consent. That consent has to be informed and specific. Each marketing message must give you an easy way to withdraw consent. If you do, the operator must stop as soon as practicable, and it must be able to show it had your consent in the first place.

The Commission’s own guidance for players (opens in a new tab) puts it simply: gambling businesses should only send you marketing texts or emails if you have agreed to them.

Choosing products and channels

A newer rule, social responsibility code 5.1.12 (opens in a new tab), came into force on 1 May 2025. It applies to online casino, bingo and betting operators, and requires them to:

• let you opt in to marketing product by product, covering betting, casino and bingo where the operator offers them, and make clear which of its products fall under each heading
• let you opt in channel by channel, covering phone calls, email and text messages where it uses them
• set every option to opt-out by default
• offer the choices when you register, and let you change them at any time afterwards
• not send you marketing that goes against the choices you have made.

So you could, for example, agree to emails about bingo but nothing about casino, and no texts at all. If an operator adds a confirmation step, the code says it may only ask you to confirm your choices with one click. It must not use that step to encourage you to opt in to more. Existing customers who had not already opted out had to be asked to confirm their preferences the first time they logged in after the rule started.

The channels named in the code are phone calls, email and text messages. The Commission’s response to its consultation confirmed that marketing by post is not included.

How to switch marketing off

1. Change your preferences in your account. Look in the account, profile or privacy settings for marketing or communication preferences, and turn off each product and channel you do not want.
2. Texts: follow the opt-out instructions in the message. The Commission says you will usually need to text STOP to a phone number or five-digit short code.
3. Emails: click the unsubscribe link in the email, or contact the business and ask it to stop.
4. Spam texts from unknown senders: forward them to 7726, or contact your mobile network, which may be able to block the number.

If it does not stop

If you keep getting marketing texts or emails after opting out, the Commission points you to the Information Commissioner’s Office (opens in a new tab), which handles complaints about unwanted marketing messages. Keep the messages and note the date you opted out. You can also complain to the operator itself; if it is ignoring your preferences, that is a matter for its complaints process too. See how to complain to a UK online casino.

If you want to stop gambling, not just the emails

If marketing is a trigger because you are trying to cut down or stop, changing preferences may not be enough. When you self-exclude with an operator, it closes your account and removes you from its marketing lists. GAMSTOP lets you do that with every online operator licensed in Great Britain at once, and it is free.

Gambling adverts on social media and YouTube

You cannot fully remove gambling adverts from social media, but the Commission explains how to reduce them:

• YouTube: signed in to your Google account, open Google’s ad settings and choose “See fewer” next to Gambling under the ad categories for YouTube. Google says it will try not to show those adverts but does not guarantee it. You may still see them if you search for or watch gambling content. Commission guide (opens in a new tab).
• Facebook: the adverts you see are shaped by what you click and like and the sites and apps you use. Facebook’s ad preferences let you adjust them. Commission guide (opens in a new tab).
• X (formerly Twitter): the Commission suggests steps including unfollowing accounts that post gambling content. Commission guide (opens in a new tab).

Blocking software and a bank gambling block can also help if you want to make gambling harder to reach.

Complaining about a gambling advert

The content and placement of adverts is regulated by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) (opens in a new tab), which enforces the UK advertising codes. Under the codes, gambling adverts must be socially responsible and must not be misleading. The Commission gives the example of an advert that did not make clear you had to deposit £10 to get a “free” bonus. Gambling adverts also must not be likely to be of strong appeal to under-18s. If you see an advert you think breaks the rules, you can complain to the ASA online.

Bonuses in marketing

Any bonus or free spins offer sent to you is still subject to the bonus rules: wagering is capped at 10 times, and since 19 January 2026 a single offer cannot require you to play more than one type of product. See our UK casino bonus rules guide.