Autorité Nationale des Jeux, France’s gaming authority, has launched a new information campaign about online casinos – “100% winner?” – to remind the French public about the dangers of illegal online gambling websites.
The campaign is part of the ANJ’s 2024-2026 strategic plan to tackle several objectives in the country’s gambling market, which includes combating illegal gambling.
It also follows a 2023 study conducted by the PWC for the ANJ on illegal gambling in France, which noted that between three to four million people have gambled on illegal sites, with online casinos being the most popular.
Beginning in October, the “100% winner?” information campaign aims to raise awareness amongst the French public about online casinos being illegal in the country, as only online poker, online sports betting and online horse racing are regulated.
The campaign will also provide education on the dangers of illegal websites in order to help reduce risky behaviours and problem gambling.
Isabelle Falque-Pierrotin, President of the ANJ, said: “The illegal supply of online gambling represents between 5% and 11% of the overall gambling market in France. It is particularly harmful for the players who consume it: addiction, over-indebtedness, family problems, etc.
“This parallel market constitutes a real financial support for multiple international criminal organisations. This is why the ANJ is determined to use all the levers at its disposal to stop this illegal supply.”
The “100% winner?” campaign will use online casino visuals to gain the public’s attention, before reminding them that these websites are illegal. The campaign will take place across interactive ads on gaming applications, web banners and on the social platforms of Twitch, Snapchat and TikTok.
Each campaign ad will be linked to a web page which will explain to the public why online casinos are banned in France, why they are dangerous and how to spot them.
Since being given the power to administratively block and delist illegal gambling sites in March 2022, the ANJ has issued 506 administrative blocking acts, resulting in 2,365 URLs being blocked.
However, the authority noted that it continues to face difficulties due to how illegal websites can rapidly reappear in a process that is called “mirror sites” – when an illegal operator creates copies of an illegal site but with a different URL address.
The ANJ stated that it has already undertaken several actions as part of a global strategic plan to combat illegal gambling websites, including working with intermediaries, such as payment providers and search engines, to innovate in methods of action and intervention.
It has also developed cooperation partnerships with national judicial authorities and other European authorities, in addition to conducting information and prevention actions with various audiences. Now, the “100% winner?” information campaign is added to that list.
