Gambling Commission’s ‘own goal’

It was described as “an own goal” – the UK’s Gambling Commission, so frequently the body that scolds wrong-doers in the gaming industry, itself had to issue an apology last week.

The watchdog organisation had to go on to Twitter to admit to tripping up by issuing a tweet to players warning them to check that the World Cup bet that they were planning to make was with a licensed operator.

But to do it, the commission illustrated its warning with a picture of a young boy decorated with painted English flags on his cheeks, which was immediately dubbed “inappropriate” by many recipients.

Over 20,000 clicks on the tweet led the commission to admit: “We realise this was an oversight and undermined an important consumer protection message. We apologise to anyone who may have been offended by unintended association and have now deleted the tweet.”