ASA Rules Mr Vegas Facebook Ad Irresponsible for Under-18s Appeal

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has ruled against Videoslots Ltd, trading as Mr Vegas, over a Facebook advertisement that featured cartoon‑style slot game tiles. The ad, which ran in February 2026, promoted new casino games with bright, animated imagery including a pink elephant, a robotic shark, a candy‑themed logo, and a cartoon fisherman.

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Despite age restrictions being set on the platform, the ASA concluded that the visuals carried strong appeal to under‑18s and breached the UK advertising code. 

The regulator said in a Wednesday release that gambling ads must avoid content likely to resonate with children, even if the games themselves are licensed for adult audiences.  

Mr Vegas had argued that the artwork was part of the games’ branding and intended for adult players, stressing that controls were in place to prevent minors from seeing the ad. 

Mr Vegas argued ads were more surreal than childlike

The Facebook campaign displayed five tiles promoting different slot games, each with distinctive artwork. “Pink Elephants 2” showed a large pink cartoon elephant on a lilac background, while “Razor Returns” featured a metallic shark with exaggerated teeth against a bright seascape.

“Sweet Bonanza” used multi‑coloured, bubbly text on a candy‑themed backdrop, and “Big Bass Bonanza” depicted a fisherman holding a large fish. 

Mr Vegas included responsible gambling logos such as “18+,” “BeGambleAware.org,” and “GAMSTOP,” and claimed the ad was restricted to adult audiences through Meta’s targeting tools. 

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The company defended the creative choices, saying the elephant was surreal rather than child‑like, the shark was aggressive rather than “cute,” and the fisherman was clearly an adult character.

They argued that candy imagery is widely used for adult entertainment and does not automatically appeal to children. Mr Vegas also pointed to Meta’s age‑gating features and audience exclusions, insisting that the ad was directed only at verified adult users.

ASA said ad resembled Ice Age movie

The ASA reviewed the ad against CAP Code guidance, which prohibits gambling promotions from having strong appeal to under‑18s. The regulator concluded that the pink elephant resembled imagery from children’s cartoons and storybooks, noting similarities to popular franchises like Ice Age. 

The robotic shark was also judged to be risky, with exaggerated features that could attract younger audiences. By contrast, the fisherman was considered more life‑like and less likely to appeal strongly to children, while the candy‑themed Sweet Bonanza tile was not found to contain specific child‑oriented characters. 

The ASA also highlighted research showing that a significant number of under‑18s use Facebook, often with accounts registered under false ages. This meant that despite Mr Vegas’s targeting controls, children could still have seen the ad. The ruling stated: “For those reasons, we concluded that the ad was irresponsible and breached the Code.”

The ASA ordered that the ad must not appear again in its current form and instructed Mr Vegas to avoid content likely to appeal to under‑18s in future campaigns.

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