Put a mark: gambling ads may start to be labeled
Advertising of gambling and bookmakers will be marked — when it is shown, it will be necessary to mark that there is a risk of losing, losing money and health. Such a bill was approved by the Cabinet of Ministers. The amendments are aimed at combating ludomania, a mental disorder characterized by an uncontrollable desire to play. In addition to the approved labeling amendments developed by the Ministry of Finance, the State Duma is preparing a number of legislative changes in the field of gambling, as well as developing clinical recommendations for the operation and diagnosis of ludomania. About who is at risk and what preventive measures are available in the Izvestia article.
Why label betting ads?
Gambling ads may begin to be labeled with warnings that participating in them does not guarantee winning, may lead to loss of funds and harm life and health. Such a document, developed by the Ministry of Finance, was approved on July 14 by the government commission on legislative activity (available to Izvestia). This was reported by sources in the Cabinet of Ministers.
Amendments have been prepared to the law "On Advertising," said Vladimir Gruzdev, Chairman of the Board of the Russian Bar Association.
"It is proposed to set the duration of such a warning, as well as the area of its placement," he said. — For example, a warning in an advertisement distributed in television programs must be at least five seconds long and occupy at least 7% of the frame area.
At the same time, the requirements will not apply to sports uniforms where such advertising can be placed.
"Bookmakers often act as partners and sponsors of sports clubs, so their trademarks are marked on the uniforms,— added Vladimir Gruzdev. — It is also proposed to establish the obligation of bookmakers and sweepstakes to post Internet banners on their official websites with a link to information about the possibility of investing available funds.
According to the information of the public law company "Unified Gambling Regulator", in 2024 the total revenue of gambling organizers amounted to 1.73 trillion rubles.
According to the authors of the bill, the growth of the betting market "increases the pathological attraction to gambling among gambling participants, that is, gambling addiction."
"According to the Ministry of Health, since 2022, medical organizations of the state healthcare system have been recording the number of complaints from citizens about gambling and betting: in 2022, more than 14 thousand complaints were registered, of which 126 were children under 14, 6.1 thousand were teenagers aged 15-17, and 7.7 thousand were adults," — it says in the explanatory note.
The document emphasizes that the problem of gambling addiction in Russian society is "quite acute."
"Citizens' addiction to gambling is a social problem that entails risks of adverse consequences for both participants in the games and their loved ones," the authors noted. "Attention is drawn to the problem of citizens using their free funds to participate in gambling in bookmakers, rather than investing."
What other changes are planned
Oleg Davydov, executive director of the first self-regulatory organization of bookmakers, told Izvestia that the community as a whole supports this initiative.
"We support the thesis that gambling is not a way of earning money, but a way of entertainment that involves a certain amount of risk, which makes it exciting," he said. — That is why it is normal to warn about risks.
According to him, the law on advertising already contains an exhaustive list of various restrictions and warnings: gambling advertising should not create the impression that winning is guaranteed, exaggerate the likelihood of winning, downplay the likelihood of losing, and should not promote the idea that gambling is a way to earn money.
"Given this, it is doubtful that an additional line about risks will have any additional effect," the expert pointed out. — The projected obligation to post information about ways to invest money on bookmakers' websites also raises questions. Investing activities are also associated with risk and can lead to the loss of all invested funds, so the issue of promoting one risky activity at the expense of another requires more careful consideration.
The obligation to label gambling ads is an important change, said Artem Metelev, Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Youth Policy.
— We also proposed it, we consider it important, — the deputy emphasized. — There is a lot of advertising today, but people should not get the feeling that there is some easy money that can be earned on betting. It's not like that, it's just an illusion.
In addition, he recalled that in March 2025, the Youth policy committee took the initiative to impose millions of fines for illegal advertising of gambling (online casinos) on the Internet, as well as to establish separate administrative liability for violations of the law on advertising by the gaming business. The bill is currently under consideration by the Government.
"We expect the government to support him," Artyom Metelev pointed out. — As for deductions and prevention in general, we will send another bill for official review in the near future. We recently had a meeting with colleagues from the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection.
According to him, the Ministry of Health, in accordance with the recommendations of the committee, is preparing clinical guidelines, uniform instructions for doctors and psychologists across the country, which will explain how to diagnose, treat, and support people with gambling addiction.
"Such an official document will be approved by the Ministry of Health in 2027," he added. — In addition, the topic of ludomania was additionally added to the hotline of the Ministry of Psychologists, so that they would be ready, among other things, to communicate with people who are susceptible to this addiction, their relatives.
Izvestia sent a request to the Ministry of Health with a request to inform at what stage the development of clinical recommendations is. In January 2025, the ministry agreed, without any amendments, on the draft law of the Ministry of Finance on the labeling of gambling advertising (the review is available to Izvestia).
We are also currently working on special tests to diagnose addiction, said Artem Metelev. They will appear on the portals of the Ministry of Health and the websites of bookmakers.
"And everyone will be able to quickly check themselves and figure out if it's worth asking for help,— he said. — This is what we are already working on.
In May 2025, the State Duma passed a bill on self-prohibition of gambling in the first reading. If adopted, the law will enter into force on September 1, 2025. The refusenik will be included in a special list, after which casinos, bookmakers and sweepstakes will not take bets from him, checking the registry data.
How underground casinos work
Despite significant progress in the regulation of gambling, the problem of underground gambling remains relevant, said Ekaterina Kosareva, Managing Partner of the analytical agency VMT Consult. Against the background of consistent government efforts to create a transparent and controlled market for legal bookmakers, the shadow sector continues to exist, mainly in the online space or under the guise of "interactive clubs."
"Such establishments operate outside the legal framework, do not pay taxes, do not protect the rights of players, and are often associated with other types of crime, from money laundering to organizing an illegal payment scheme," she added.
The expert noted that teenagers and other vulnerable groups have free access to such illegal platforms, where there is no system of identification, rate limiting or risk control. Unlike licensed operators operating according to strict standards, underground resources operate uncontrollably and are often hosted on foreign domains, which makes it difficult to stop their activities.
For example, in May 2025, the Blagoveshchensk City Court sentenced five local residents in a case of illegal organization and conduct of gambling.
"From October 2023 to January 2024, a group appeared in Blagoveshchensk, which opened three underground casinos. There were more than 40 computers with access to the illegal Superomatic system and 11 slot machines in the halls," the court said.
To hide their activities, the organizers of illegal gaming clubs used encrypted messengers, installed cameras and intercoms.
Also this year, the police stopped the activities of three illegal gambling businesses in the Central, Zaeltsovsky and Oktyabrsky districts of Novosibirsk, the Interior Ministry's main directorate for the region reported.
"During the searches, the police seized more than 100 pieces of gambling equipment, as well as cash in the amount of more than 300 thousand rubles," the department said.
What is ludomania?
Ludomania, or gambling addiction, is a serious mental disorder characterized by an uncontrollable desire to play, despite the negative consequences for all spheres of human life, Anatoly Vereurgin, a psychologist at the Sberbank Health medical company, recalled.
— People with ludomania experience a constant craving for excitement, the need to increase the stakes or difficulty of the game in order to achieve satisfaction or to recapture the money they lost earlier, — he explained. — There is often a loss of control over the frequency and duration of the game. The extreme stage of ludomania is characterized by the destruction of a person's social and personal life.
Due to mental dependence on gambling, it is possible to break normal relationships with loved ones, lack of desire to communicate, and develop social isolation, accompanied by disregard for family responsibilities, work, or study. Anxiety, chronic stress, depression, and suicidal thoughts also occur.
"This is due to the fact that a person with ludomania often faces financial problems, for example, due to increased debts, it becomes necessary to sell real estate, valuables and family savings," the psychologist added.
The risk of developing ludomania is higher in people who are prone to impulsivity, as well as in those who are experiencing emotional turmoil or financial difficulties. In some cases, this disorder occurs in people who are looking for thrills, such as those suffering from boredom and loneliness.
— There is also a risk of ludomania in people with certain mental conditions, such as depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, — said the doctor. — The chance also increases after the first big win, as the brain receives "fast" dopamine and, as a result, a person tends to repeat such an experience again.
The treatment of mental dependence requires the help of a psychotherapist.
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