{"id":13243,"date":"2026-06-16T08:28:32","date_gmt":"2026-06-16T07:28:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sbceurasia.com\/en\/?p=13243"},"modified":"2026-06-16T08:28:35","modified_gmt":"2026-06-16T07:28:35","slug":"bgc-seeks-meta-google-support-to-tackle-illegal-gambling-market","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sbceurasia.com\/en\/2026\/06\/16\/bgc-seeks-meta-google-support-to-tackle-illegal-gambling-market\/","title":{"rendered":"BGC Seeks Meta, Google Support to Tackle Illegal Gambling Market"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Grainne Hurst<\/strong>, CEO of the British Betting and Gaming Council (BGC)<\/strong>, has directly approached global tech companies including Meta <\/strong>and Google<\/strong>, urging them to join the trade body\u2019s fight against the black market. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In an open letter, the BGC and its members underscored that illegal gambling is now rampant across social media, search engines, messaging services and digital advertising networks, easily targeting British consumers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hurst relayed that those who are at most risk of such marketing campaigns are the most vulnerable, those who have self-excluded, who are seeking support for a disruptive gambling behaviour \u2014 and that they\u2019ve been preyed upon by illegal operators who are hiding in plain sight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThese illegal operators are not part of the regulated gambling industry. They are not licensed by the Gambling Commission. <\/strong>They do not follow British rules. They do not carry out the checks required to protect customers. They do not contribute to research, prevention and treatment. They do not pay UK tax,\u201d the CEO was adamant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hurst referenced a speech by Tim Miller<\/strong>, Director of Research and Policy at the Gambling Commission, from earlier this year, where he also called for tech conglomerates to take a stance against the black market.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Back then, Miller went into more detail about how such illegal companies operate on a mass scale, with users able to access full lists of operators not licensed by the Commission through a simple Google<\/strong> search.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe uncomfortable truth is that this content is still readily available, despite the extraordinary technological capabilities at your disposal,\u201d Hurst added, alluding to the arsenal of tools that firms like Meta have, such as data vaults, tech expertise, artificial intelligence, illegal content markers, among others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hurst: how big tech can do more Market data laid out by Hurst pointed to research done by World Advertising Research Center (WARC)<\/strong>, which expects illegal gambling advertising spend in Britain to overtake that of the regulated sector by as early as 2028. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the consumer side, H2 Gambling Capital <\/strong>expects stakes with black market operators in Britain to double in size by that same year, going up from the \u00a317bn ($22bn) today to \u00a333bn ($42bn) in 2028.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The UK government has already begun to tighten the oversight of the sector, with Gambling Minister Baroness Twycross <\/strong>heading the Illegal Gambling Taskforce, of which several tech companies are already a part of \u2014 alongside licensed gambling operators and payment providers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the biggest regulated gambling operators in the UK, Entain<\/strong>, has also embarked on a crusade to address the issue with illegal operators, singlehandedly taking on unlicensed advertising in the Premier League and the handing of trademarks to such companies. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But Hurst remained adamant: \u201cYet as the black market continues to grow, there remains little visible evidence that collective action is matching the scale of the threat.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The CEO put forward multiple clear-cut measures that she believes tech companies should consider if effective results are to be achieved. These include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n