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Big game marketing
Researchers from the UK’s University of Bristol have released the results of a study claiming Americans viewed gambling advertising up to every 13 seconds during the six Stanley Cup finals games.
3.5 marketing messages every minute
Bristol’s study shared with The Guardian on Tuesday analyzed gambling marketing solely around June’s NHL and NBA finals. The report claims betting brands hit US NHL audiences with an average of 3.5 marketing messages every minute.
Games analyzed included the six Florida Panthers vs Edmonton Oilers Stanley Cup NHL match-ups, and the seven Indiana Pacers vs Oklahoma City Thunder NBA finals games.
Reports didn’t specify which one of the six NHL games featured the 1-per-13-second brand impression rate; the unnamed Stanley Cup clash was reportedly the most ad-dense game studied, “at 4.7 gambling-related marketing instances per minute.”
NHL marketing dwarfs NBA
According to The Guardian, Bristol’s study logged 6,282 instances of gambling-related marketing across the 13 NHL and NBA games. The instances included commercials, logos on team shirts, ads appearing rink- and courtside, and in-game mentions.
What has raised eyebrows is that the NHL broadcasts were responsible for 94% of all the gambling-linked material shown over the 13 games.
Broadcasts of the NBA games, claims the study, averaged only “0.26 gambling references per minute.”
Reports cited Bristol’s researchers as stating the stark contrast is likely in part down to the NBA’s increased use of social media platforms including YouTube, which impose “stricter limits on gambling ads.”
AGA takes pop at profs
The academics also broke the stats down further, revealing that in-stadium gambling marketing–which includes rinkside/electronic boards, shirt logos, and other static structures–was the most common route to market used by betting firms during the 13 games.
Bristol researchers added that the in-stadium branding gives betting companies “persistent exposure” throughout the game.
now annual and predictable leaks”
American Gaming Association spokesperson Joe Maloney, however, disparaged the report “by UK professors.” Maloney called on the Bristol academics to engage directly with the AGA to learn more about the body’s approach to responsible advertising before “their now annual and predictable leaks to UK-based media outlets.”
Maloney highlighted AGA’s own research from earlier in 2025 that claimed sports betting ads in 2024 made up just 0.4% of all ads seen on US TV.
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