Gambling and games policy

All creatives must comply with Authorized Buyers Gambling and games policy and all local regulations and industry standards.

We support responsible gambling advertising and abide by local gambling laws and industry standards, so we don’t allow certain kinds of gambling-related advertising. Gambling-related ads are allowed if they comply with the policies below and the advertiser has received the proper Authorized Buyers certification. Gambling ads must target approved countries, have a landing page that displays information about responsible gambling, and never target minors. Check local regulations for the areas you want to target.

Creatives promoting online and offline gambling-related content targeting countries not listed below will be disapproved except when served through Deals (Preferred Deals and Programmatic Guaranteed) where block override has been enabled by the Publisher.

Country	Open Auction	Private Auction*	Preferred Deals*	Programmatic Guaranteed*
Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Taiwan, Czechia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Hungary, India, Ireland, Israel, Japan, Korea (the Republic of), Latvia, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Peru, Philippines, Portugal, Romania, Russian Federation, Serbia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom
United States of America	**	**

* The ability to transact with gambling ads is dependent on buyer and seller participation of these features.

** Subject to Certification

The following are some examples of gambling-related content that we allow only under certain conditions.

Gambling

Offline gambling

 Promotion of physical, real-money gambling activity or establishments

Examples

 

"Brick and mortar casinos” in Las Vegas or Macau, entertainment events at casinos, streaming of offline poker tournaments

Online gambling

If you want to advertise for online gambling, you must be certified by Google. Learn how to apply for certification.

 Promotion of online, real-money gambling

Examples

 

Online casinos or bookmakers, bingo or slots sites or apps, online lottery ticket or scratch card purchase, online sports betting, games played with virtual currencies or items that have real-world value

 Promotion of sites that contain or link to content relating to online gambling

Examples

 

Promotional products such as vouchers or bonus codes; educational materials such as tutorials or e-books; software such as poker odds calculators; other gambling-related information including tips, odds, handicapping, and sports picks; aggregator or affiliate sites that promote gambling-related content

Online non-casino games

 Any internet-based game where money or other items of value are paid or wagered in exchange for the opportunity to win real money or prizes based on the outcome of the game

Examples

 

Fantasy sports, online chess tournaments, or "match-three" video games played for money or prizes

Apply for certification to promote online gambling

If you want to advertise for online gambling, you must be certified by Google. Learn how to apply for certification.

Check Gambling country restrictions for all restrictions that apply to the country your creative is targeting.

To run gambling-related content on Open Auction, you must certify the domain of the advertiser for each country you target before your ads can serve. Ensure your ads only target approved countries, have a landing page that displays information about responsible gambling, and never target minors.

Country restrictions for gambling

Authorized Buyers accounts can target gambling ads only to the countries listed below. If a country isn't listed, it means Authorized Buyers Ads currently does not support gambling advertising in that country.

United States

Product	Allowed?	Details
Online non-casino games	Allowed with limitations	Google doesn't allow advertising for Internet-based games where money or other items of value are paid or wagered to win a greater sum of money or other item of value, except for Daily Fantasy Sports in certain states where legal. Daily Fantasy Sports advertisers must meet the following requirements, in addition to holding a state license where required: Ads may not target minors (younger than 18 years old). A disclaimer explaining that the service is intended only for adult users must be featured on the landing page. Information for problem gamblers must be in the ad creative and / or on the landing page. Advertisers cannot imply affiliations with schools or universities. If advertisers are targeting their ads in a state that does not require a license, the advertisers must be licensed in at least one other state that does require a license to operate. Advertisers must also be certified with Google. See how to apply.
Online gambling	Allowed with limitations	Google allows ads promoting the following online gambling by state-run entities: Lotteries Google allows ads promoting the following types of online gambling by state-licensed entities in certain states where legal: Horse racing Sports betting Online casinos Advertisers must: (1) not target users under 21 or users outside of the state(s) where they are licensed, and (2) include a warning against the dangers of addictive and compulsive gambling and related assistance information on the landing page or in the creative Advertisers must also be certified with Google. See how to apply.

Social casino games

Social casino game ads are allowed on the Open Auction and Deals if they comply with the below policies and the advertiser has been certified. Social casino game ads must target approved countries and should not appeal to minors. Check local regulations for the areas you want to target.

Promotion of social casino games, which are online simulated gambling games where there is no opportunity to win anything of value, such as money or prizes.

For social casino game ads and destinations, the following are not allowed:

Social casino game destinations that offer gambling or games where the opportunity exists to win real money or prizes based on the outcome of the game. 

Promotion of "real money gambling" destinations. This includes gambling-related advertisements that appear on your social casino games destination.

Country restrictions for social casino games

Authorized Buyers accounts can target social casino ads only to the following countries:

Country	Open Auction	Private Auction	Preferred Deals	Programmatic Guaranteed
Australia, Austria, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Israel, Latvia, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Peru, Portugal, Romania, Senegal, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom, United States	**	**	**	**
Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, Greece, Hong Kong, India, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Philippines, Russian Federation, Slovenia, Sweden, Taiwan, Turkey			**	**

** Subject to Certification

Specifying approved app in the declared click-through URL

Buyer must include the APPROVED-APP or APPROVED-APP-ID in the declared click-through URL. Not including the approved APPROVED-APP or APPROVED-APP-ID in the click-through URL will cause ads to be disapproved.

The following are examples that will work for the declared URLs:

Examples for Google Play:

 

• URL: play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.APPROVED-APP
• URI: market://details?id=com.APPROVED-APP 

Examples for Apple App Store:

 

• URL: itunes.apple.com/us/app/idAPPROVED-APP-ID 
• URI:  itms-appss://itunes.apple.com/us/app/idAPPROVED-APP-ID

Apply for certification to promote social casino games

Advertisers need to apply for certification from Google in order to run social casino games. Learn more about certification and apply here.