Australia Targets Gambling Influencers Promoting Pokies on Social Media

Gambling influencers have become increasingly common across platforms like TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, and Kick, where creators regularly post videos related to pokies, sports betting, casinos, and gambling wins.

The content can take many forms. Some influencers film themselves playing pokies in pubs and clubs, while others share videos of themselves playing at online casinos and experiencing large wins or doing gambling challenges. In most cases, the posts are designed to be entertaining rather than educational and focus on the excitement of gambling, celebrations, and potential payouts.

What makes this type of content different from traditional gambling advertising is that it often appears as personal content rather than a promotion. Viewers are not necessarily watching a commercial or sponsored ad, and, worse still, some are not even aware they’re exposed to a gambling advertisement.

Instead, they are watching a creator they follow share a gambling experience as part of their everyday lifestyle.

According to the Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission (VGCCC), this can create a misleading impression of gambling.

The regulator says that many influencers show the highlights of gambling while rarely showing the losses that usually come with it. As a result, viewers may be exposed to content that presents gambling as harmless fun, a source of easy money, or even a desirable lifestyle.

Chief Executive Officer Suzy Neilan specifically criticised influencers who “fan out wads of cash and celebrate winning thousands of dollars”. She said that this type of content can promote gambling as a harmless activity while downplaying the risks involved.

The main concern is younger audiences. Many gambling influencers have large followings among Australians aged 18 to 24, a demographic regulators believe is more easily influenced by social media personalities and online trends.

The reason this issue has attracted so much attention is that the Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission believes some gambling content may go beyond being controversial and potentially cross into illegal territory.

Under Victoria’s Gambling Regulation Act 2003, the promotion and advertising of pokie machines is prohibited. According to the regulator, certain types of content showing pokie gameplay, venue visits, or large online gambling wins may be considered unlawful depending on how they are presented and whether they encourage others to gamble.

In a statement, the regulator said that content showing gameplay, wins, and gambling activity “can be constituted as illegal gambling” under Victorian law.

Because of this, the commission has confirmed that it is actively monitoring gambling-related content and speaking directly with influencers to make them aware of the legal risks involved.

Those found to be breaching the rules could face fines of up to A$24,421. However, at this stage, no specific influencers have been publicly named, and the regulator has not announced any enforcement action. The warning itself, though, means that authorities are taking the issue seriously and are prepared to look for legal options where they believe gambling laws have been breached.