When UK reality star Sam Gowland took to Instagram to celebrate some recent sports betting wins, he didn’t think that anyone would care. But in the UK, where regulators like the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) and the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) watch gambling operators like hawks on mice, nothing involving betting, wagering, gambling or gaming is ever truly innocent.
Gowland, who is best know for a Jersey Shore spin-off called the Geordie Shore, started out innocently enough by praising a pick service called Thebettingman on Instagram saying that Thebettingman offered the, “best second source of income I’ve ever had … hence the new car I’m getting.”
“I told use [sic] Thursday night if u wanted to make money the betting man is the way forward for £25! 12 wins out of 14 this weekend and another winner this morning.”
While the news that that side hustles like Uber driving and Etsy crafting had been rendered moot was likely joyous news to Gowland’s 1.5 million Instagram follower, it wasn’t received so well by the ASA.
After an over-caffeinated citizen reported the post for failing to identify itself as a paid promotion (which it may or may not have been) the ASA stepped into action. They agreed with the complainant that the post should have been identified as a promotion.
Thebettingman told the ASA that they had told Gowland not to publish the post, but he had done it anyways, according to a report on the Chroncile Live. But after all the fuss, TheBettingman received only a warning to be more careful in the future and the whole thing turned into another giant waste of time based on a single complaint.