Department of Internal Affairs says 22Bet Brendon McCullum ads 'misleading'

Thursday, 6 April 2023

22Bet advertising includes clips of Brendon McCullum in an arid location in a Ferrari.

Former Black Cap and current England cricket coach Brendon McCullum is fronting advertisements for online bookmaker 22Bet that have been labelled by the TAB 'dubious tactics to recruit punters”.

The ads are coming so thick and fast at New Zealand users of YouTube through multiple advertiser accounts, it has prompted angry posts on McCullum’s Facebook page, with one claiming it was making the cricketer “the most hated man in NZ, or at least the laughingstock”.

The 22Bet advertising onslaught has also caused concern at the Problem Gambling Foundation, which has complained to the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA), which regulates gambling.

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Foundation spokesperson Andree Froude said the Gambling Act banned overseas companies from advertising gambling services to New Zealanders.

Froude said some of the advertising, and 22Bet’s website, were “misleading” such as the statement that “22Bet is a highly trusted bookmaker in New Zealand”.

A DIA spokesperson said: “22Bet’s current advertising is misleading as they are not a registered New Zealand sports bookmaker, nor are they licensed or regulated in New Zealand by the DIA.”

“We are currently looking at avenues we can pursue, including contacting 22Bet advising them to change their misleading marketing and advertising which insinuates in any way that they are a New Zealand-based gambling operator,” the DIA spokesperson said.

The advertising prompted one Reddit user to make the same complaint, only to be told by a DIA staffer that “AsYouTube is an international website and is not specifically hosted within New Zealand, any advertisement through there would not be considered advertising within New Zealand.”

DIA confirmed that is how it interpreted the Gambling Act.

22Bet and McCullum have been approached for comment.

22Bet adverts featuring Brendon McCullum are being sent out from multiple accounts.

Some people have taken to posting their frustrations online, including about how they think 22Bet is managing to fire so many ads at them.

Jared Guy posted on McCullum’s Facebook page: “I’m being bombarded by 22Bet ads, despite blocking them multiple times lol. I feel like I’m under attack.”

Michael Nolan posted: “Never had such an annoying ad. I’m getting bombarded by them in every corner of the internet.”

TAB wants protection from competition from overseas bookmakers who do not have to make financial contributions to sport in New Zealand.

Joseph Wong posted: “I block one ad or channel, and they still keep coming. I must have done this over 20 times.”

TAB chief commercial officer Cameron Rodger said 22Bet appeared to be using “affiliates” to get around YouTube restrictions designed to limit the number of ads from a single advertiser that users were exposed to.

The 22Bet advertising campaign is serving as a rallying cry for New Zealand to follow Australia and ban companies that are not based and regulated in the country from offering gambling services to its citizens.

Rodger said: “22Bet’s advertising is a prime example of an overseas operator looking to exploit one of the last relatively available markets in an affluent country.

”We understand the Government is considering options around restricting overseas operators, and we are hopeful that this work will be progressed quickly,” he said.

TAB made financial contributions to the sports it took bets on, but overseas bookmakers like 22Bet did not.

Problem Gambling Foundation’s communications director Andree Froude says New Zealand’s gambling laws were written more than two decades ago before online gambling took off, and desperately need updating.

“This is money leaving New Zealand and not coming back. Put simply, 22Bet does not return a single cent to New Zealand sports and racing. They are parasites that give responsible betting operators a bad name,” Rodger said.

“We estimate about $140 million is lost overseas every year, and with cowboys like this wading into the New Zealand market, this just emphasises the need for extensive protections for Kiwis who enjoy a bet to make sure they’re betting safely.”

22Bet website said it was “managed and operated” by TechSolutions (CY) Group in Cyrprus. It also said it was “operated” by TechSolutions NZ, which was registered in Curaçao, a small island off the coast of Venezuela. Curaçao is part of the Netherlands, and both it and Cyprus are dubbed tax havens by the Tax Justice Network.

“A ‘net’ around New Zealand is the obvious step to make sure that Kiwis are gambling safely through a properly regulated operator, and that New Zealand communities are the beneficiaries of profits from betting and gambling,” Rodger said .

“If the Government sends a warning to these operators that a net is coming, we expect that this aggressive and intrusive behaviour will reduce as they will understand they will not be able to retain New Zealand customers in the long term.”

22Bet’s website shows its casino services were “blacklisted” in more than 60 countries including Australia, Belgium, Bulgaria, Colombia, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, , France, Hong Kong, Italy, , Philippines, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, and United States.

Froude said New Zealand was “behind the 8-ball” when it came to regulating gambling from online bookies and casinos, and that was letting down the groups most harmed by it.

The Government’s strategy to prevent and minimise gambling harm, published in June, says the groups most at risk were Māori, Pacific people, Asian people, young people, and people on lower incomes.

Froude said the DIA started a review of online gambling in 2019, but the outcome of that review had not been published.

Rodger said the introduction offers of free bets by 22Bet required punters to wager the money a large number of times.

The sign-up “bonus” has to be wagered five times on sports bets before it could be withdrawn as cash by punters, or 50 times as bets on 22Bet’s online casino games.

Rodger said when TAB offered bonus bets to people joining TAB for the first time, they only had to wager the money once before they were able to withdraw their winnings, assuming they placed a successful bet.