Banning or severely restricting free bets would be another attack on the punter, it degrades the customer experience, and it also hurts business and that jeopardises jobs. What’s more, as this survey makes clear, if promotions are restricted or banned, there’s only one place punters will go, that’s the growing, unsafe, unregulated gambling black market. “The market for betting is hyper competitive with most customers using a number of different operators. Michael Dugher, CEO of the Betting and Gaming Council, said: “This survey reinforces what anyone who knows anything about betting already understands - that betting customers, just like consumers of any other product, value offers like small free bets which are subject to strict controls and restrictions to protect the vulnerable. Punters can enjoy an expected 20 hours of live TV coverage across the week, with around one million viewers expected per day, with a peak expected during the Gold Cup on Friday after 1.6 million tuned in last year.Īnti-gambling campaigners have repeatedly called for a ban or heavy restrictions on promotions to be included in upcoming Government reforms to betting and gaming, expected to be published within weeks. The survey results come as thousands flock to Cheltenham Festival for the biggest week of racing in the calendar, and millions more watch online.Īround 274,000 will attend Cheltenham, generating an estimated £274m for the local economy, while as estimated £1bn will be staked across four days of racing. Meanwhile 54 per cent think banning promotions would likely drive punters to unregulated, unsafe black market gambling sites which do offer promotions.

Over 80 per cent of punters believe betting companies should be allowed to offer promotions such as free bets.Īccording to a YouGov survey on behalf of the Betting and Gaming Council, 82 per cent of punters said betting and gaming companies, “should be allowed to offer promotions such as free bets” to their customers.

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