Coral slammed by ad watchdog for linking gambling to seduction

A TV ad for bookmakers Coral has been banned by the advertising watchdog for linking gambling to seduction.

Video: Coral TV ad banned by ASA


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The spot, created by DLKW Lowe, depicted men in a barber’s shop discussing betting on a race before becoming distracted by the entrance of a woman wearing a jockey’s outfit that exposed her midriff. The woman then displayed betting odds for a horse on a sign before bending towards one of the men in the scene and flirtatiously tapping his phone with her whip to encourage him to place a bet.

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) said the manner in which the woman’s entrance was shown placed an immediate emphasis on her sexual attractiveness and that the link between gambling and seduction was reinforced by the sustained influence the character had on her surroundings.

Rather than drawing attention to Coral’s betting offer, the ASA said viewers would be likely to understand the men’s reactions on the woman’s presence in the shop as a sign of attraction to her rather than the odds on display.

The watchdog concluded, therefore, that the ad linked gambling to seduction and banned the ad from being broadcast again.

Coral said that the woman was “dressed in a manner fitting for a jockey” and that far from seducing the men in the shop, they were made to look foolish in a “gently humorous way” as the ad portrayed the female character as being “completely unattainable”.

Broadcast clearing body Clearcast said there was no implication in the ad of sexual success or future interaction between the characters, adding that the spot was acceptable due to its “light-hearted and unrealistic” nature and also because the woman did not lead the men into making a choice they otherwise would not have made.

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