Flutter Entertainment wins landmark appeal on gambling consent
Sky Betting and Gaming (SBG), part of Flutter Entertainment, secured a major legal victory after the Court of Appeal of England and Wales ruled that a gambler’s addiction does not invalidate consent to marketing communications. The appellate judges overturned a previous High Court decision that found SBG acted unlawfully by using cookies, tracking data, and targeted promotions on a problem gambler identified as RTM.
Lord Justice Warby stressed that consent under UK data protection law must be assessed objectively, calling the earlier ruling a “legally mistaken approach.” He explained: “To prove consent, the data controller does not have to prove what was actually in the mind of the individual.”
According to the UK Data Protection Act 2018, which incorporates GDPR principles, strict rules on how organisations handle personal data are in place while granting individuals rights such as access, rectification, and transparency. The dispute began when RTM argued that SBG’s data practices encouraged further gambling and financial harm. At first, the High Court sided with RTM, but the Court of Appeal dismissed all five grounds of his challenge.
The UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) did not officially endorse the Court of Appeal’s ruling in Flutter Entertainment’s case. In fact, judges dismissed arguments from the ICO that operator awareness of vulnerability should still be considered, warning that such a factor would create “unworkable uncertainty” for business. This puts regulators under pressure to define how consumer protection will be balanced with business certainty, according to media reports.
Implications for businesses
The latest ruling defines the handling of behavioural data and targeted advertising for industries. If they acknowledge that consent is valid through user actions, regardless of the user’s mental state, the decision enables organisations with a more predictable framework for digital marketing and compliance.
But there are ethical trade-offs as well. Vulnerable consumers, like those struggling with addiction or compulsive behaviours, are left exposed. According to legal analysts, while the ruling strengthens data-driven business models, it also adds pressure on regulators to initiate new safeguards.
Wider industry impact
The precedent extends beyond gambling. E-commerce platforms, social media networks, and streaming services, industries that are built on personalised recommendations, gain confidence that consent obtained through user actions will stand up in court.
For marketers, the ruling eliminates ambiguity around consent mechanisms, making targeted campaigns more possible. But companies that fail to consider the social impacts risk reputational damage and possible regulatory tightening.
🆕 We’ve issued a fine and reprimand to Police Scotland for failures in extracting, securing and disclosing of personal information.
— ICO – Information Commissioner's Office (@ICOnews) March 11, 2026
We found that they had extracted the entire contents of a person’s mobile phone, including highly sensitive personal information. pic.twitter.com/ZzkubWN05d
Balancing clarity and consumer protection
The ruling sheds light on the tension between commercial interests and consumer protection, even as businesses accept the clarity. Addiction and mental health concerns, for one, are not factored into the validity of consent. This raises more questions about fairness in digital advertising.
The UK ruling on gambling consent differs greatly from global approaches. The EU’s GDPR requires explicit opt-in consent, while the US generally relies on opt-out systems that vary by state. In other words, the UK’s object test of consent streamlines more closely with EU law but diverges from the fragmented US model.
The case now returns to the High Court to examine remaining claims on fair data handling, but the appellate decision already stands as a landmark precedent, simplifying compliance for businesses while sparking debate over the ethical boundaries of consent in the digital age.
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