ASA Rules Favor Ladbrokes in Goonies Slot Complaint

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has dismissed a complaint against Ladbrokes over paid Facebook ads promoting The Goonies slot game.

In an announcement published on March 31, 2021, the slot was showcased with an image of a nautical chart with text overlay, as well as several realistic gold doubloons and the Jackpot King logo.

One applicant contested whether an advertisement reference to the film The Goonies would be particularly attractive to those under 18 years of age.

Ladbrokes claimed that the advert did not feature any images or characters from The Goonies and said the film will not be well known to children in 2021 as it was originally released in 1985.

The regulator agreed and ruled that the ad did not violate the rules and no further action was required.

In its evaluation, the ASA noted, "We realized that when it was originally released in 1985, The Goonies, which involved a pirate treasure hunt and was dominated by children, especially appealed to audiences under the age of 18.

“We understood that the film was available on streaming services since its release, but did not see a massive re-release in theaters.

“We also realized that the film had gained cult status, especially among adults who were children when the film was originally released.

“We felt that because of that, it wasn’t a recent or current film that kids would probably be familiar with. However, we thought they might like the content of the film.

"However, given its popularity among adults, we didn't think it would appeal more to people under 18 than to those over 18," he concluded.