NFL, NHL Warn Canadian Lawmakers about Sports Betting Advertisement Restrictions

A bill that might even more curb advertising for online sports wagering websites is making progress in Canada's Senate in spite of current concerns raised by expert leagues, whose words have actually gone a long way with legislators in the past.


The Senate of Canada's Transport and Communications Committee satisfied Wednesday evening and reported Bill S-269 to the complete chamber for additional dispute and possible passage.


S-269 proposes a nationwide framework for advertising sports betting in Canada that will suggest ways to restrict such marketing, consisting of restricting the number of advertisements or the areas they can appear.


Be reasonable


However, the National Football League, perhaps the most popular offering at any online sportsbook in Canada and the U.S., sent out a letter to the committee that cautioned federal legislators versus going too far.


The Sept. 26 letter, posted on the Senate's website today, approaches the marketing concern by mentioning the benefits of legal sports betting, particularly the conversion of illegal activity into controlled betting that can be kept an eye on for any funny service.


"The elimination of prohibited betting, specifically overseas betting operators, needs not simply a legal alternative, but robust, active monitoring and enforcement backed by considerable civil and criminal penalties for infractions," wrote Jonathan Nabavi, the NFL's vice president of public law and federal government affairs.


Nabavi's letter then included (emphasis his): "Unreasonably curtailing responsible advertising will undoubtedly obstruct the essential effort to channelize unlawful sports betting into the legal market."


The NFL is warning Canadian legislators about "unreasonably reducing accountable advertising" for sports betting in connection with a bill in the Senate that might even more restrict such marketing.