Meta Ads for Online Gambling and Betting Brands

Meta says ads that promote online gambling and games are only allowed once an ad account has obtained authorization. Meta grants it per ad account, asks for a licence or other lawful documentation, and bars ads to under-18s and to unsupported markets. The table below shows what falls outside it. Read the linked pages and ask a qualified adviser what applies where you sell.

What does Meta count as online gambling or games?

Meta defines online gambling and games as any product or service where anything of monetary value is part of both the method of entry and the prize. Monetary value includes cash and digital currencies such as bitcoin. The scope includes:

• all forms of online gambling, such as betting, lotteries, raffles, casino games, fantasy sports, bingo, poker, skill game tournaments and sweepstakes;
• games with monetary value in both entry and prize, including games that require purchases to continue play or to gain an advantage in winning prizes;
• ads whose landing page promotes online gambling or games, even if nobody can gamble on that page, such as aggregator or affiliate sites;
• games that offer a limited trial and then require payment.

Which advertisers need authorization?

Advertiser	What Meta’s help article says
Online operator	Needs authorization
Aggregator or affiliate	Needs authorization; a landing page that promotes gambling is in scope
Brick-and-mortar casino	Not online gambling, if neither the ad nor the landing page promotes or facilitates online gambling
State or government lottery	No authorization, if the advertiser is directly or exclusively responsible for running it
Shop prize promotion	No authorization when it involves buying a product at the usual retail price and online gambling is not the primary business model of the advertiser or any featured brand
Free-to-play game	No authorization if it neither simulates gambling games nor offers any chance to win anything of monetary value

How do you get authorization?

Meta says you request it in the Authorizations and Verifications tab of Meta Business Suite. In the application you:

1. say whether you are an operator, aggregator, affiliate or agent;
2. pick the territories and gaming types, where you must be licensed or otherwise lawfully permitted to advertise;
3. give a legal business name that matches the licence;
4. list your URLs and the ad accounts to authorize;
5. upload licences or other lawful documentation, which varies by business type, territory and gaming type;
6. acknowledge Meta’s online gambling and gaming addendum.

Meta then reviews it and emails a decision. You are responsible for keeping licences current, and Meta says its authorization depends on an active licence and that it can ask for your documents at any time.

What changes when you add a country or an ad account?

Before you target a new jurisdiction for the first time, Meta says you must declare your intent in the same tab. In most cases, except certain exempt jurisdictions such as Brazil, authorized ad accounts get instant approval with no extra documents. Advertisers assume legal liability and must follow local regulations.

To share an authorization with another ad account in the same business portfolio, you need admin or advertiser access on both accounts.

How do partnership ads work?

Meta says partners need no authorization of their own when the operator publishes the partnership and the partner is only tagged. A partner who publishes gambling ads must apply as an affiliate and upload the operator’s licence.

What about social casino games?

Meta lets you run ads for social casino and free-to-play games without prior authorization if they offer no chance to win money, coins, gifts or anything of monetary value, do not target under-18s and do not target prohibited countries. Meta recommends disclaimers, such as that success at the game does not imply success at real-money gambling, or that the game has in-app purchases.

What should you do before launch?

1. Decide which row of the table you are in.
2. Check the unsupported markets list on Meta’s transparency page for every country you target.
3. Set the minimum age to at least 18, or higher where local law requires.
4. Gather licences before you apply.
5. Ask a qualified adviser what local law requires.

FAQ

Can an affiliate run ads for a sportsbook?

Meta lists aggregator and affiliate sites as in scope, so an affiliate who publishes the ads needs authorization and must upload the operator’s licence. If the operator publishes the partnership ad and the affiliate is only tagged, Meta says the partner needs no authorization of its own.

Does a casino hotel event ad need authorization?

Meta’s help article lists physical, real-money gambling establishments and entertainment events at casinos as not online gambling, provided the ad or landing page does not promote or facilitate online gambling. If the ad or landing page promotes or facilitates online gambling, that exemption does not apply.

Can a free game ad target under-18s?

No. Meta does not allow online gambling and games ads to target people under 18, and its social casino rules repeat that for free-to-play games. Meta also says authorized advertisers must follow the minimum legal age in each territory, which can be higher.