Australian Football League will no longer feature gambling ads in stadiums thanks to Sportsbet’s vacation of the ad space
Sportsbet, the exclusive wagering partner for Australian Football League (AFL), has decided to vacate its in-stadia advertising spot at both the Marvel stadium and Melbourne Cricket Ground, since the start of the 2026 season.
This means the gambling company is paying to keep the space, but not putting its logo on the LED screens that line the field. Crucially though, this also locks out commercial competitors from taking the advertising space.
Sportsbet – which has secured exclusive rights to the wagering partnership – has not reduced its fees for the deal, which is estimated to reach close to the $100m figure over the seven year period and covers more than in-stadia ads, according to The Aussie Corporate.
This is a “voluntary decision” made by Sportsbet which “forms part of a multi-year strategy to reduce the prominence of wagering advertising around live sport”, a spokesperson for the company said
The change comes following a growing frustration within the AFL community surrounding gambling ads within live sports.
Sportsbet controls roughly 40% of the fragmented Australian online sports betting market, so can depend more reliably on targeted digital ads with a tighter focus (and not visible to families). This offers less of a reputational risk in comparison to the highly visible, out-of-home ads from within sports stadiums.
A parliamentary enquiry in 2023 recommended a phased ban on gambling ads in live sport, but has led to little change. As a result, advertisers themselves have been cutting back on visible activity to ensure positive engagement with the sporting community.
This includes a reduction from Sportsbet in live odds integration from sports broadcasts due to community sentiment, as well as publicly endorsing tighter restrictions on jersey and in-stadium sponsorships – although the company did bid for both, arguing that it would advantage its rivals not to do so.
The Australian government has stressed it has rolled out significant harm reductions, including a ban on credit cards for gambling, and a national self-exclusion register.
