BOOKIES are facing into the final furlong for daytime TV ads with next week’s Cheltenham Festival set to be the last time punters will see gambling adverts in between races at the Greatest Show on Turf.
Ireland’s new Gambling Regulatory Authority officially kicked into action today after Justice Minister Jim O’Callaghan signed an order to give the new watchdog powers to take on the bookies.
They ran out of time to implement the ad ban for Cheltenham, but the Irish Sun understands that enacting this measure is one of the key priorities for the GRAI and will come into effect in the coming months.
But, ads or no ads, Irish punters are expected to place around €120 million in bets at this year’s festival, with Willie Mullins’ Galopin Des Champs the great Gold Cup Irish banker.
From today, the GRAI issues new licences to bookmakers, online gambling apps and lotteries and will be in charge of ensuring these companies are complying with the law.
Bookies who break the rules can face heavy financial penalties of up to €20 million or prison sentences of up to eight years for executives.
The last Government passed laws to give the new watchdog the power to ban gambling ads from our TVs and online between the hours of 5:30am and 9pm.
The new laws will also clamp down on bookie incentives for punters including free bet promos and VIP treatment for big spenders.
This means that next week’s Cheltenham Festival will be the last time bookmakers can advertise on TV and online between races at the famous English meeting.
CEO of the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland Anne Marie Caulfield said: “While most people who gamble do so safely, a 2023 ESRI study estimated that 130,000 adults in Ireland are experiencing problem gambling with a further 279,000 identified as experiencing moderate levels of problem gambling.
“Greater awareness and education about harms from gambling will be a key focus of the Authority.
“Safeguards will be enacted to protect and prohibit children from participating in gambling or presenting on premises where gambling activities are ongoing specifically and expressly.
“The Authority will uphold these safeguards and ensure that they are adhered to within the gambling industry.”
The Cheltenham Festival is one of the most watched horse racing events in the world with hundreds of thousands of people in Ireland tuning in for the Gold Cup each year.
