AGCOM Crackdown: Italy Targets Stealth Marketing and Affiliate Loopholes to Enforce Gambling Ad Ban

The multi-billion euro question currently facing Italy’s gambling sector does not center on whether operators can advertise—that door was firmly shut years ago. Instead, it is about whether sending a customer a notification about an odds boost or paying an online influencer to review a platform constitutes a helpful update or an illegal marketing pitch.

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Italy’s communications authority, AGCOM, is forcing a confrontation over this exact distinction. Following a preliminary call for input that brought in over 20 detailed industry submissions, the regulator is opening a formal consultation. The goal is to establish hard definitions separating purely educational or informational updates from hidden promotional campaigns that violate the state’s aggressive anti-gambling laws.

The Friction Between Total Bans and Digital Reality

This regulatory friction is the direct legacy of the 2019 Dignity Decree. That legislation instituted a sweeping, near-total prohibition on gambling advertisements across the country, cutting off lucrative sports sponsorships, television commercials, search engine marketing, and affiliate networks.

Yet, seven years into the ban, the digital ecosystem has evolved faster than the law. Licensed operators argue they have a legitimate right—and a duty under their regulatory mandates—to communicate with their existing user base about product changes, account details, and consumer safety. The problem is that things like loyalty programs, bonus structures, and digital affiliate partnerships sit in a legal twilight zone.

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New Licenses Force a Regulatory Reckoning

The timing of this intervention is not accidental. Rome recently rolled out a revised licensing framework for online gambling, a move that naturally intensifies the spotlight on how corporate compliance teams operate. Furthermore, Italian sports organizations, facing persistent funding gaps, have been quietly lobbying politicians to reconsider the strict limits on sports betting sponsorships.

AGCOM lacks the legislative power to rewrite the Dignity Decree or weaken the original ban. However, its upcoming guidelines will effectively dictate the commercial survival strategy for companies trying to maintain a customer base without breaking the law.

When the consultation begins, gaming firms and trade bodies will attempt to secure concrete examples of what language is deemed safe. For the regulator, the challenge is preventing those definitions from becoming loopholes that invite the industry back onto Italian screens.

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Source: igamingexpress.com