Australia’s top gambling operators spent at least $240,000 on Facebook ads promoting novelty bets for the US election last week, according to The Guardian.
This comes amid growing expectations that the Australian government will soon unveil its response to a parliamentary inquiry that recommended banning online gambling ads within three years.
The US election-related wagers included novelty bets such as whether Donald Trump’s speech would mention fraud or the color of his tie—just weeks before the government is expected to announce its long-awaited plans to restrict wagering advertisements.
According to the same report, between 31st October and 6th November—the week of the US election—TAB, Ladbrokes, Sportsbet, and Neds were the top four Facebook advertisers in Australia, spending a combined $229,789 on politically related ads.
Meta’s ad library tool, which tracks companies advertising on political and social issues, revealed that TAB spent the most at $100,225. Palmerbet was the 12th-largest advertiser, spending $11,000. The tool only tracked gambling ads related to the US election, excluding broader betting promotions like those for the Melbourne Cup, which took place just a day before.
In recent months, TAB spent between $175,000 and $200,000 promoting a single US election wagering ad targeting primarily younger men under 35. Ladbrokes offered novelty market bets, including whether the losing candidate would concede on election night and whether Trump’s speech would mention fraud or legal challenges. Neds promoted bets such as an $18,000 market on whether Travis Kelce would endorse Kamala Harris before the election, and another on the color of Trump’s tie during his speech.
Sportsbet, meanwhile, spent between $25,000 and $30,000 on a computer-generated ad featuring Kamala Harris and Donald Trump.
Earlier this week, AGB covered research revealing Facebook’s targeting of vulnerable Australian users with alcohol and gambling ads.
The findings show that Facebook identified 10 Australian participants with 89 distinct interests related to alcohol and gambling. This targeting was made possible through data provided by 201 alcohol companies and 63 gambling companies, giving Facebook access to detailed information about the individuals involved in the study.
