Myth busters
The betting and gaming industry is often the subject of misconceptions and misleading claims.
These myth busters set out the facts, using independent research, official data and regulatory evidence to provide a clear and accurate picture of the regulated sector in Great Britain.
It addresses some of the most common myths, highlighting the safeguards in place, the contribution the industry makes to the economy and sport, and the importance of ensuring customers are protected within a well-regulated market.
Myth buster 1 – The black market myth:
Myth: The black market is a myth.
Reality: Excessive regulation risks pushing customers toward unsafe, illegal operators who target the most vulnerable and have no customer protections in place.
Data point: 1.5m Brits stake over £10bn on the growing, unsafe gambling black market each year, according to research by Frontier Economics and H2GC.
Source: https://bettingandgamingcouncil.com/news/shock-new-study
Myth buster 2 – The black market access:
Myth: The black market is difficult to access.
Reality: The black market is not hard to find. Unsafe, unlicensed operators are often just a few clicks away, making it easy for vulnerable customers to bypass protections that exist in the regulated market.
Data point: Search engines can return hundreds, if not thousands, of results for terms such as “non-GamStop casinos”, actively directing customers toward unlicensed operators that operate outside UK regulation and offer no safeguards, no meaningful protections, and no accountability.
Source: https://www.google.com/search?...
Myth buster 3 – Advertising:
Myth: Gambling advertising is unregulated and rising.
Reality: Gambling advertising is regulated by the Gambling Commission, the Advertising Standards Authority and Ofcom, and it is falling.
Data point: Gambling advertising spend by licensed operators in the UK is continuing to decline, according to new independent analysis. The research, conducted by Alvarez & Marsal (A&M) and set out in the Gambling Advertising and Sponsorship Report 2025, shows that gambling advertising accounted for 2.7% of total UK advertising spend in 2024, down from 3% the previous year. The report also found that overall gambling advertising spend by licensed operators has been declining steadily since 2021, falling by 1.7% year on year.
Myth buster 4 – Problem gambling rates:
Myth: Problem gambling rates are high in Great Britain.
Reality: Problem gambling rates in Great Britain are low by international standards and have remained broadly stable over time.
Data point: The most recent Health Survey for England estimated that 0.7% of the adult population experience problem gambling. This is below global estimates of 1.2%, according to the World Health Organization. Rates in Great Britain have also remained broadly consistent for over a decade.
Source: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/gambling
Myth buster 5 – Funding for Research, Prevention and Treatment:
Myth: The regulated sector does not fund Research, Prevention and Treatment in a meaningful way.
Reality: The regulated sector now funds Research, Prevention and Treatment through a mandatory statutory levy introduced by the Government, which will provide substantial, ring-fenced funding for independent research, prevention and treatment services.
Data point: The new statutory levy has already raised around £120 million since its introduction in April 2025 to fund independent research, prevention and treatment programmes. Prior to the introduction of the levy, BGC members had already voluntarily contributed over £170 million over five years to support harm prevention and treatment.
Source: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/statutory-gambling-levy
Source: https://bettingandgamingcouncil.com/news/bgc-members-donate-record-172-5-million
Source : https://bettingandgamingcouncil.com/news/bgc-welcomes-levy
Myth buster 6 – Regulation:
Myth: Gambling in Great Britain is lightly regulated.
Reality: Gambling in Great Britain is subject to one of the most comprehensive regulatory regimes in the world, underpinned by the Gambling Act 2005, extensive secondary legislation and a detailed licensing framework overseen by the Gambling Commission. The Government’s 2023 Gambling White Paper introduced over 60 additional reforms, including stake limits for online slots, stronger protections for young adults and new rules on bonuses and marketing, further strengthening safeguards across the regulated sector.
Further, in November 2024 the BGC launched its Code Handbook, which consolidates 20 voluntary codes containing over 100 safer gambling measures that members follow as a condition of membership.
Great Britain has a long established and robust regulatory system with a stringent licensing regime and strong enforcement powers.
Data point: The Gambling Commission has wide ranging investigation and enforcement powers and can and does impose tough financial sanctions on operators that fail to comply with licence conditions.
Source: https://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/public-register/regulatory-actions/full
Source: https://bettingandgamingcouncil.com/uploads/Downloads/BGC-CODE-HANDBOOK-2025.pdf
Myth buster 7 – Online betting:
Myth: Online betting lacks effective safeguards.
Reality: Online play includes real time monitoring, safer gambling tools and interventions.
Data point: Mandatory tools include deposit limits, time outs, self exclusion via GamStop and proactive customer interactions. The UK has one of the most tightly regulated gambling markets in the world. The White Paper introduced 62 new measures that contribute to robust safeguards across the sector.
Myth buster 8 – Under-18s and vulnerable groups:
Myth: Gambling advertising targets vulnerable people.
Reality: Strict rules prohibit targeting under 18s or vulnerable groups.
Data point: Operators do not target under 18s, as this would be illegal, and under 18s are not allowed to gamble on licensed operators’ sites. Operators also seek to identify people who may be at risk through schemes such as GamStop and GamProtect, which prevent players from accessing UK regulated sites. The Whistle to Whistle ban has led to a 97% reduction in the number of TV betting adverts seen by children during that period.
Source: https://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/
Source: https://bettingandgamingcouncil.com/annual-review/responsible-advertising-2
Myth buster 9 – Problem gambling and gambling addiction:
Myth: Problem gambling and gambling addiction mean the same thing.
Reality: Gambling Disorder or gambling ‘addiction’ is a recognised mental health condition and a behavioural addiction, while problem gambling is a classification indicating loss of control and harmful consequences but is not itself a recognised mental health disorder.
Data point: Gambling Disorder requires a clinical diagnosis, while problem gambling is a screening classification rather than a formal mental health diagnosis.
Source: Psychiatry.org - Gambling Disorder
Myth buster 10 – Mixing promotional products:
Myth: Operators cross sell customers to more harmful products.
Reality: Regulation prevents operators mixing products within bonuses and targeting customers with advertising.
Data point: Operators are not permitted to combine different products within incentives and customers must opt in to advertising at a product level.
Myth buster 11 – Withdrawals:
Myth: Operators withhold customer withdrawals to prevent winnings being taken out.
Reality: Operators are subject to strict KYC and Anti-Money Laundering controls and must carry these out when dealing with all customers.
Data point: The Gambling Commission states, “Complaints on this remain low in proportion to the total amount of completed withdrawals across the industry.”
Myth buster 12 – VAT:
Myth: Gambling operators are exempt from VAT.
Reality: VAT is a consumer tax which does not lend itself to the model of betting and gaming where customers stake money that may be returned as winnings. For this reason, countries throughout the world do not apply VAT to gambling products, instead using specific gambling duties based on operators’ revenues.
Data point: Gambling companies are instead subject to excise duties, which are set at 40% for online gaming from April 2026 and 25% for online betting from April 2027.
Source: https://obr.uk/forecasts-in-depth/tax-by-tax-spend-by-spend/betting-gaming-duties/
Myth buster 13 – Crypto:
Myth: UK licensed operators accept cryptocurrency.
Reality: The regulated UK sector does not currently accept crypto payments.
Data point: The UK regulator does not allow for the use of cryptocurrency and no licensed operators offer this as a payment method.
Myth buster 14 – Targeted offers and bonuses:
Myth: Operators target customers with offers and bonuses to lead them to gamble where they otherwise would not.
Reality: Operators are subject to strict licence conditions regarding promotions.
Data point: All customers must opt in to receive direct marketing bonuses and promotions.
Myth buster 15 – Gambling Review:
Myth: The regulated sector opposed the Gambling Review and reform.
Reality: BGC members supported the Gambling Review as an opportunity to raise standards and promote safer gambling.
Data point: The Government published reforms in April 2023, the first major changes in a generation, and the BGC publicly supported the Review and its objectives.
Source: https://bettingandgamingcouncil.com/news/response-to-white-paper
Myth buster 16 – Economic contribution:
Myth: The regulated betting and gaming industry does not make a meaningful contribution to the economy.
Reality: The regulated sector supports jobs, growth and substantial tax revenues in the UK.
Data point: BGC members support 109,000 jobs, generate £6.8bn for the economy annually and contribute £4bn in taxes according to an EY report.
Source: https://bettingandgamingcouncil.com/news/eyreport24
Myth buster 17 – Sport contribution:
Myth: Betting and gaming companies do not materially support sport.
Reality: BGC members support British sport from grassroots to elite level through significant annual contributions.
Data point: BGC members annually contribute around £350m to British horseracing through levy, media rights and sponsorship, plus £40m to the EFL and its clubs and £12.5m to snooker, darts and rugby league.
Source: https://bettingandgamingcouncil.com/news/bgc-members-record-contribution
Myth buster 18 – Popularity of betting:
Myth: Only a small minority of people take part in betting and gaming.
Reality: Betting and gaming are popular leisure activities for millions of adults in Great Britain.
Data point: Each month around 22.5 million adults in Great Britain take part in some form of betting or gaming, including buying a lottery ticket, playing bingo, visiting a casino, playing online or placing a wager on sport such as football or horseracing.
Myth buster 19 – Offshore operations:
Myth: Gambling companies are based offshore to avoid paying UK tax.
Reality: All gambling operators pay tax on a point of consumption basis. If a bet is placed in the UK by a customer, tax is paid in the UK on that bet.
Data point: The gambling industry contributed £4bn in taxes to the Exchequer, as well as £6.8bn in gross value added to the UK economy.
Source: https://obr.uk/forecasts-in-depth/tax-by-tax-spend-by-spend/betting-gaming-duties/
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