The UK advertising regulator has banned two promotions of "fan tokens" from Arsenal Football Club, saying they were misleading their fans about the risks of investing in cryptocurrencies.
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) said that the North London club was "taking advantage of the inexperience or credulity of consumers, trivializing investment in crypto assets, misleading consumers about the risk of the investment and not making it clear that the 'token' was a cryptoasset ".
Arsenal said it will seek an independent review of the ruling "to seek greater clarity on the current position of the ASA."
Arsenal's ad ban was one of those released by the regulator on Wednesday, including ad bans from BT, cider brand Kopparberg and online retailer THG.
A growing number of football clubs are getting involved with crypto assets, including Watford through t-shirt sponsorships from cryptocurrency trading platforms and Barcelona and Juventus, which offered their own "fan tokens" or non-fungible tokens (NFTs) that serve as digital souvenirs, while also potentially very lucrative for clubs.
However, some have faced problems given the lack of regulation of space. Last month Manchester City suspended a partnership with a cryptocurrency startup that appeared to have minimal corporate presence.
The head of the Arsenal Supporters Trust, Tim Payton, told the Times newspaper last month that football clubs should have a "greater responsibility of duty of care towards their fans" and suggested that there should be more regulation of cryptocurrencies.
An Arsenal spokesperson said: “We take our responsibilities with regard to marketing to our fans very seriously. We carefully consider fan communications regarding our promotions and provide information on financial risks. "
The latest ASA rulings, 25 in all, also included a ban on another crypto ad. Skrill, described as an "online wallet and money transfer service," took advantage of consumers' inexperience, the regulator said.
BT was criticized for a broadband internet ad claiming to guarantee speeds of 60MB / s, after a complaint. THG, the online retailer of consumer products like makeup and protein shakes, made "misleading claims about possible discounts for hair products" on its Lookfantastic website.
The regulator said a Kopparberg radio ad broke the rules because it implied that alcohol could contribute to an individual's popularity and featured people who appeared to be under 25 years old.
The ASA also named and shamed four influencers who posted ads on their Instagram feeds, even for failing to properly disclose that they were paid for the posts, a growing problem for the regulator. They were reality TV personalities Charlotte Dawson and Chloe Ferry, beauty blogger Jamie Genevieve, and video blogger Anastasia Kingsnorth.
It was him second time Ferry has been censored in six months, after she was criticized in June for running an ad for a company that claimed it could help clients pay off up to 85% of their debts.
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In Marc, the ASA warned that crack down on influencers who broke the rules. Under the UK advertising code, paid endorsements must be clearly marked, usually with a hashtag such as #ad or #spon, short for advertising or sponsored.
Complaints against two ads, from clothing retailer Jigsaw and construction machinery retailer JMAC, were upheld for targeting women.
Regulators also upheld 26 complaints that a Halloween billboard poster for Blackpool Pleasure Beach was "inappropriate and disturbing for young children," although Norfolk Dinosaur Park avoided censorship for its poster after complaints that it was too scary.
