[Update: 26 January 2026] Following our memorandum and petition delivery on the 13th November 2026 at Emperor’s Palace, where the Responsible Gambling Summit sponsored by Betway and Hollywood Bets took place, the Department of Trade and Industry has responded and is working on developing norms and standards on gambling advertising and regulations which will respectively be finalised by the end of May 2026 and July 2026. We will continue to keep a close eye on the progress and, with your support, continue putting pressure on other stakeholders.
We’ve all seen it; gambling is out of control in Mzansi, and it’s rapidly growing. We have to act now before more lives are destroyed.
We demand that the government:
• Stop Illegal Billboards: An investigation found that no single billboard on the R21 in Johannesburg is legal [1]. Some of the illegal advertisements are gambling-related.
• Ban gambling ads and sponsorships: Gambling companies, supported by some ministers, are sponsoring sports, events, children’s desks and sports uniforms, etc, to promote their brands and gambling. If public finances were managed properly, there would be no need for sponsors. Despite South Africa’s gambling crisis, Sports, Arts and Culture Minister Gayton McKenzie says our sports need sponsorship from the gambling industry [2]. But Cricket in South Africa voluntarily ended sponsorship from cigarette companies, and has thrived without that sponsorship, and our society is better for it.
• Implement stricter advertising regulations laws: Our generally poor advertising regulations have enabled gambling adverts to go out of control [3].
Earlier this year, Minister Parks Tau confirmed online gambling ads violate the National Gambling Act [4][5]. He formed a gambling council to review this, but progress is unknown. We need government action NOW!