A casino company in Ireland is in hot water with the ASA over an ad that showed Santa playing a slot machine. [Image: Shutterstock.com]

A casino operator in Ireland is in trouble with the country’s Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) for an ad that showed Santa Claus playing a slot machine.

the marketing material could influence young people and normalize gambling

The ASA determined the marketing material could influence young people and normalize gambling as they would feel it was okay to gamble since Santa did. The ad for Jester’s Casinos was plastered across Dublin Bus vehicles and contained the caption “Even Santa Stops Here – Tallaght, Dún Laoghaire, Dublin City.”

The ASA ruled that the casino company can no longer display the ad in its current form and must remove it from digital and physical channels. Legal representatives for Jester’s confirmed that it immediately withdrew the ad without challenging the complaints.