How are sports betting advertising rules set in the US?
Part of US and Canada targeting
The short answer
US sports betting advertising is regulated state by state. Since the Supreme Court's 2018 Murphy decision, each state that legalizes wagering writes its own advertising rules, such as New York's audience and disclaimer rules. The American Gaming Association's voluntary code adds a 73.6 percent adult audience standard, and platforms limit ads to licensed states.
Key takeaways
- Murphy v. NCAA (May 14, 2018) struck down the federal ban on state authorization, leaving each state free to act on its own.
- New York benchmarks a placement's under age audience against the state's most recent decennial census.
- The AGA code asks for placements where at least 73.6 percent of the audience is reasonably expected to be 21 or older.
- Google requires sports betting advertisers to hold the relevant state licenses and not to target users outside their licensed states, while allowing national targeting on YouTube.
How is sports betting advertising regulated in the US?
The legal starting point is a Supreme Court case. In Murphy v. National Collegiate Athletic Association (opens in a new tab), decided May 14, 2018, the Court held that the federal Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act could not stop states from authorizing sports gambling. Justice Alito wrote for the Court: "Congress can regulate sports gambling directly, but if it elects not to do so, each State is free to act on its own." The result is a patchwork, because each state that legalizes wagering sets its own licensing and advertising terms.
Definition
- Licensed operator
- A sportsbook authorized by a specific state's gaming regulator to accept wagers in that state. A license in one state says nothing about legality in a neighboring one, which is why advertising rules and platform policies are written around the licensed jurisdiction.
| Layer | Example | What it decides |
|---|---|---|
| State regulation | New York State Gaming Commission rules 5329.37 and 5330.45 | Audience age limits, required messages, banned placements and disclaimers in that state |
| State enforcement | New York Attorney General alert, February 2, 2026 | Treats ads for unlicensed wagering as a violation of state gambling law |
| Industry code | American Gaming Association Responsible Gaming Code of Conduct, updated September 2025 | Audience composition, college limits, responsible gaming messages, with a review board |
| Platform policy | Google's gambling and games policy, US rules | Which licenses an advertiser must hold and where it may target |
Do sports betting ad rules differ by state?
Yes, and New York shows how detailed a single state can be. The New York State Gaming Commission publishes its advertising restrictions (opens in a new tab) for sports wagering in rule 5329.37, and rule 5330.45 states that "The provisions of section 5329.37 of this Subchapter are incorporated herein" for mobile sports wagering licensees and vendors, so the same rules follow the app. Other states write different numbers and lists, so a multistate plan reads each state's own text.
| Provision | What New York requires | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| Youth appeal | "No sports wagering message shall be designed to appeal primarily to those below the legal age" | 5329.37(e)(1) |
| Audience benchmark | No placement in broadcast, cable, radio, print or digital media where the under age share of the audience exceeds that group's share of the state population in the most recent decennial census | 5329.37(e)(2) |
| Depicting minors | "No advertisement for sports wagering shall depict a person under the wagering minimum age" | 5329.37(e)(5) |
| Responsible gaming pages | No promotion on any website or printed page or medium devoted primarily to responsible gaming | 5329.37(b)(2)(x) |
| Unlicensed offerings | Ads by entities that are not licensed operators must "disclaim conspicuously that the wagering offerings are not available in the State" | 5329.37(a)(4) |
| Owned sites | Licensee websites and profiles with sports betting content include a reminder of the legal wagering age | 5329.37(f) |
State enforcement goes beyond licensees. On February 2, 2026 the New York Attorney General (opens in a new tab) issued consumer and industry alerts stating that "conduct, advertisement, and promotion of unlicensed sports wagering violate New York's gambling laws," and that violations "could be subject to civil and criminal liability." The same alert said so-called prediction markets "do not have the same consumer protections as regulated platforms."
What does the industry's responsible marketing code require?
The American Gaming Association represents commercial and tribal casino operators, sports betting and iGaming companies and suppliers. Its Responsible Gaming Code of Conduct (opens in a new tab), updated September 2025, says AGA members engaged in US gaming operations "must adhere" to it, and its advertising sections are overseen by a Code Compliance Review Board of independent chairs and five member representatives that evaluates filed complaints.
| Topic | What the code says |
|---|---|
| Audience composition | Place ads in broadcast, cable, radio, print or digital media (social media, SMS, websites, streaming) only where at least 73.6 percent of the audience is reasonably expected to be 21 or older, by reliable, up to date audience composition data |
| Appeal to minors | No images, symbols, cartoon characters, celebrities, athletes, influencers or music that appeal primarily to audiences below 21 |
| Talent age | Models, actors, influencers, athletes and entertainers at least 21, substantiated by identification |
| Colleges | No gaming ads in college or university owned news assets or on campuses; no NIL deals with amateur athletes |
| Messages | A conspicuous responsible gaming message and a toll free helpline number, where practical; no "risk-free" language, no guaranteed success, no chasing losses |
| Frequency | No placement with such intensity and frequency that it saturates a medium or becomes excessive |
Which audiences must sports betting ads avoid?
Three groups recur in the sources. People under 21 come first: the AGA code calls 21 "the prevailing legal age for wagering," and New York measures under age audiences against the census. Students are second, through the AGA code's campus and college media limits. The third group is people looking for help, which is why New York bars promotions on media devoted primarily to responsible gaming.
Audience checks for a sports betting site list
- Every site has age composition data, and its 21 and older share meets the code or state threshold that applies.
- College and university owned news sites, student media and campus properties are off the list.
- Pages and sites devoted to responsible gaming or problem gambling help carry no wagering promotion.
- Sites whose content appeals primarily to people under 21 are excluded, per the AGA code.
- Placement frequency on any single site stays short of saturation.
- Creative carries the responsible gaming message and helpline the state requires, such as New York's HOPENY message.
Context matters as much as audience. Sports news and analysis fit a sportsbook brief, while pages on gambling addiction recovery do not, even if their audience is entirely adult. Reviewing pages by meaning, the approach behind brand suitability, separates the two in a way an age figure alone cannot.
How should sports betting campaigns restrict geography?
Geography is where the state by state model meets ad delivery. Google's gambling and games policy (opens in a new tab) says sports betting operators "must be licensed by the state entity in certain states where legal," and that advertisers must not target users under 21 or users outside the states where they are licensed. It also states: "Google allows national targeting for ads promoting sports betting on YouTube." That YouTube allowance is a platform rule, not a state one, and New York's disclaimer rule for offerings not available in the state still applies to what the ad says.
Location settings narrow delivery but do not guarantee it. Google's location targeting options (opens in a new tab) say advertisers should consider Presence targeting when "Your business falls within a sensitive vertical with strict targeting limitations," and add that "100% accuracy is not guaranteed in every situation." Wagering itself is gated separately: the AGA code asks operators to use geolocation to restrict gaming access to people within a legal jurisdiction and to verify location before any bet. Ad geography and wagering geolocation are two controls, and neither replaces the other. Border accuracy limits are covered in programmatic geo targeting.
What does a sports betting site list look like on a real brief?
Fictional example
A licensed sportsbook in Albany and the Hudson Valley
An unnamed sportsbook licensed in New York plans display and online video around the fall football season in Albany and the Hudson Valley. The planner starts from professional football analysis, regional sports news and fantasy sports coverage, then checks age composition for each site against the New York census benchmark and the AGA's 73.6 percent figure.
A high school sports site and a university athletics blog come off the list. A problem gambling resources page that matched on topic is set aside. Location is set to Presence inside New York, the creative carries the state's helpline message and a legal age reminder, and the team plans a post launch check of delivery by state.
How does PlacementGraph support a sports betting brief?
Frequently asked questions
Can a sportsbook advertise in a state where it is not licensed?
Google's policy bars sports betting advertisers from targeting users outside the states where they are licensed, apart from its national targeting allowance on YouTube. New York requires ads by entities that are not licensed operators to state conspicuously that the offerings are not available in the state, and its Attorney General treats promotion of unlicensed wagering as illegal.
Do sports betting ads need a helpline number?
Under the AGA code, ads carry a conspicuous responsible gaming message and a toll free helpline number where practical. New York's rules point to its responsible gaming message, such as Gambling Problem? Call 877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369), and require it on each webpage or profile page for digital placements.
Can sportsbooks sponsor college athletes?
The AGA code says no sportsbook should enter name, image and likeness endorsements or partnerships with amateur athletes, and that partnerships with colleges or universities should not include any component that promotes gaming, except alumni networks or content focused only on responsible gaming education.
Do these rules cover prediction markets?
New York's Attorney General addressed them separately in February 2026, saying so-called prediction markets operate without the supervision of the New York Gaming Commission and do not have the same consumer protections as regulated platforms. The Commission's sports wagering advertising rules are written for its licensees and vendors.
Sources
- Murphy v. National Collegiate Athletic Association, 584 U.S. (2018) (opens in a new tab)Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School
- Advertising Restrictions (opens in a new tab)New York State Gaming Commission
- Consumer Alert and Industry Alert: Attorney General James Warns New Yorkers of Potential Harms (opens in a new tab)New York State Attorney General, February 2, 2026
- Responsible Gaming Code of Conduct (opens in a new tab)American Gaming Association, updated September 2025
- Gambling and games (opens in a new tab)Google Ads Advertising Policies Help
- About advanced location options (opens in a new tab)Google Ads Help
Researched and written by PlacementGraph Research. Read how we research, source and update these pages. Corrections: diana@placementgraph.com.