Inside the Package
From 6:00 AM to 8:30 PM, the number of television commercials for gambling will be limited to three per hour. During live sports broadcasts, such commercials are completely prohibited. Radio ads for betting cannot be broadcast during times when children are on their way to school, from 8:00 AM to 9:00 AM and from 3:00 PM to 4:00 PM.
On digital platforms, gambling ads will only be shown to users who are logged in, are at least 18 years old, and have not opted out of viewing them. Celebrities and athletes may not appear in advertisements. Advertising in stadiums and on players’ uniforms is prohibited, as is “odds-style” advertising targeting sports fans.
Advertising is not the only target. Online keno and similar products will be banned. For the first time in national legislation, match-fixing will become a criminal offense. The government also stated that it will take additional measures to block offshore operators’ access to Australian users.
BetStop and Counselling
BetStop, the national self-exclusion registry, will be reviewed and given stronger tools. More funding will go to financial counselling for people dealing with gambling harm.
Adults can still gamble. What changes is what children see. “We allow adults to have a punt if they want to, but also make sure Australian children don’t see betting ads everywhere they look”, he said.
Plibersek did not hold back. “Every Australian knows someone hurt by gambling”, she said. “Gambling harm doesn’t just hurt individuals, it can have a devastating impact on families and communities”. She pointed specifically to the link between problem wagering and domestic violence, noting that young men are particularly at risk.
Murphy’s Unfinished Business
In 2023, the late MP Peta Murphy introduced an amendment to the Interactive Gambling Act 2001 containing 31 recommendations, including a complete ban on gambling advertising. It became known as Murphy’s Law. Progress stalled. The government first pushed the deadline back to 2025, then discussed watered-down versions. In October 2024, the Green Party introduced its own bill in the Senate calling for a complete ban on gambling advertising.
Thursday’s package is not the full ban Murphy pushed for. But it is further than Australia has gone before.
RWA Fires Back
Kai Cantwell, CEO of RWA, said the industry was given no warning before the announcement. “We acknowledge advertising levels were too high in the past but we’ve listened and we’ve acted”, he said.
The reforms will require changes to broadcasting laws, advertising codes, and criminal laws in individual states. A legal challenge at some stage looks likely.
