UKGC's Miller Calls Out Meta Over Illegal Gambling Ads at ICE

The UK Gambling Commission's executive director Tim Miller delivered one of the most pointed regulatory speeches in recent memory at ICE Barcelona on 19 January 2026, directly challenging Meta and other suppliers who profit from both licensed operators and illegal gambling sites. His central question: "whose side are you on?"

Miller's address marked a significant escalation in regulatory rhetoric, moving beyond traditional enforcement updates to directly name companies he believes are undermining efforts to combat illegal gambling while simultaneously profiting from the legitimate industry.

UKGC's Enforcement Campaign Delivers Results

The Gambling Commission has intensified its fight against illegal operators over the past 12 months, with Miller presenting comprehensive data from enforcement activities between April and the end of December 2025. The regulator issued 592 cease and desist orders to advertisers and operators, while reporting 327,964 URLs to various search engines.

Of those reported URLs, 203,571 have been successfully removed, demonstrating significant cooperation from search platforms. The Commission also referred 839 websites to search engines for delisting and disrupted 627 websites through takedowns or geo-blocking measures.

"We also published further information on how we are taking action. There is of course more to do but between April and the end of December 2025 alone, we have issued 592 Cease and Desists to advertisers and operators, reported 327,964 URLs to various search engines and seen 203,571 URLs removed as a result so far."

— Tim Miller, Executive Director, UK Gambling Commission

The regulator's research, analysing data collected over 12 months, revealed complex motivations driving consumers to illegal sites. A significant portion of illegal gambling users are self-excluded individuals, while others seek better offers, cryptocurrency options, or simply end up on illegal platforms by chance.

Industry Complicity in Building Illegal Market

Miller's most provocative arguments targeted legitimate industry players who maintain commercial relationships with suppliers also serving illegal operators. He argued this dual approach undermines collective efforts to channel consumers toward regulated markets.

"If your affiliates are also driving traffic to the illegal market then you are helping to build the illegal market. If you are using the same suppliers, such as webhosting companies, as the majority of illegal websites then you are helping to build the illegal market."

— Tim Miller, Executive Director, UK Gambling Commission

The executive director proposed three critical questions for legitimate businesses:

1. How operators can hardwire illegal market threat assessment into procurement and commercial decisions
2. What due diligence processes verify suppliers aren't working with illegal competitors
3. Which contractual provisions can prevent or penalise supplier relationships with illegal operators

Miller acknowledged these measures might reduce competition and increase costs short-term, but argued the financial impact of illegal market growth far exceeds such temporary pressures.

Direct Challenge to Meta's Advertising Practices

The speech's most striking moment came with Miller's direct confrontation of Meta, owner of Facebook and Instagram. He highlighted the platform's role in advertising illegal casinos targeting British consumers, particularly "not on GamStop" sites aimed at self-excluded players.

GamStop operates as Britain's multi-operator self-exclusion scheme, meaning these advertisements specifically target vulnerable consumers who have taken deliberate steps to avoid gambling.

"Companies like Meta will tell you that they don't tolerate the advertising of illegal sites and will remove them if they are notified about them. But that approach suggests that they don't know about those ads unless alerted. That is simply false."

— Tim Miller, Executive Director, UK Gambling Commission

Miller pointed to Meta's searchable ad library, where anyone can find current advertisements using keywords like "not on GamStop." He argued this transparency tool proves Meta could proactively identify and remove illegal gambling advertisements if it chose to do so.

The regulator's engagement with Meta has yielded limited progress beyond "warm words," with the tech giant suggesting the Commission should deploy AI tools to monitor and report problematic advertisements.

"It could leave you with the impression they are quite happy to turn a blind eye and continue taking money from criminals and scammers until someone shouts about it."

— Tim Miller, Executive Director, UK Gambling Commission

Global Implications and Resource Allocation

Miller emphasised this challenge extends far beyond British borders, with similar illegal gambling advertisements appearing across Meta's platforms globally. This forces regulators worldwide to spend tax-payer money monitoring platforms that could perform this function themselves.

The executive director framed Meta's position as a choice between supporting platform users – many seeking to escape gambling harm – or enabling criminals and scammers to exploit vulnerable populations.

Enhanced Powers and Increased Funding

The UK Government announced £26 million in additional funding over three years in November, specifically earmarked for the Commission's illegal gambling enforcement efforts. This represents significant recognition of the regulator's progress and confidence in continued success.

Upcoming legislative changes will provide new enforcement tools through the Crime and Policing Bill, currently at Committee Stage in the House of Lords. Once enacted, this legislation will grant powers to obtain orders suspending IP addresses and internet domain names linked to illegal gambling operations.

Miller indicated the Commission is establishing a comprehensive programme for this expanded enforcement work, with details to be shared as the new financial year approaches.

Collective Action Strategy

The executive director stressed that regulatory action alone cannot solve illegal gambling challenges. Success requires coordinated efforts involving government, international regulatory colleagues, industry partners, and technology providers.

"No one actor in this space can win this battle alone – we need to work together. We need to work together to ensure that there is no room for suppliers and other companies who want to benefit from the legitimate industry whilst also actively undermining our collective efforts to tackle illegal gambling operators."

— Tim Miller, Executive Director, UK Gambling Commission

This multi-pronged approach combines regulation, prosecutions, legislation, technology solutions, commercial pressure, and both hard and soft power applications.

Miller argued the legitimate industry possesses "significant economic muscle and considerable commercial leverage" that remains underutilised in fighting suppliers who serve both legal and illegal operators.

Commercial Pressure as Enforcement Tool

The speech highlighted a strategic shift toward using commercial pressure to complement traditional regulatory enforcement. Miller acknowledged practical limitations in pursuing legal action against cloud services companies in California or affiliate marketers in Curacao through domestic courts.

Instead, he advocated making relationships with illegal operators "commercially toxic" through coordinated industry action. This upstream approach aims to commercially isolate third parties enabling illegal operators to steal customers or exploit vulnerable consumers.

The strategy recognises that consumer protection and revenue protection align in this context, making it a natural area for regulator-industry cooperation.

Implementation Challenges and Timeline

While Miller didn't specify enforcement timelines for companies maintaining dual relationships, he clarified his comments weren't implied threats against operators failing to act immediately. Instead, he positioned the initiative as building "greater common purpose, greater alignment, greater partnership between regulator and regulated."

The Commission plans to share more programme details as it moves into the new financial year, suggesting concrete implementation guidance will follow these strategic principles.

Miller's approach balances recognition of commercial realities with urgency about illegal market growth, acknowledging short-term cost increases while arguing long-term benefits justify immediate action.

Regulatory Precedent and International Implications

The speech represents a notable evolution in regulatory communication, moving from traditional enforcement reporting to direct corporate naming and public pressure tactics. Miller's willingness to identify Meta specifically signals a new approach to engaging with global technology platforms.

This strategy may influence other regulators facing similar challenges with suppliers serving both legitimate and illegal gambling operations across multiple jurisdictions. The Dutch gambling regulator KSA has similarly intensified enforcement efforts, making illegal gambling operations a top supervision priority for 2026.

The emphasis on commercial pressure over purely legal remedies acknowledges practical limitations of traditional enforcement while leveraging industry economic power more effectively.

Industry Response Expectations

Miller's three key questions for legitimate businesses suggest the Commission expects concrete policy changes rather than general commitments to combat illegal gambling. The focus on procurement, due diligence, and contractual provisions indicates expectation of measurable implementation steps.

The speech's timing at ICE Barceloona, the industry's largest trade show, ensures maximum visibility among operators, suppliers, and technology providers who could implement these commercial pressure strategies.

Miller's direct approach to Meta may encourage other regulators to adopt similar public pressure tactics with technology platforms enabling illegal gambling through advertising policies.

Strategic Implications for Market Development

The executive director's approach recognises illegal gambling as both consumer protection and market development challenge. By framing supplier relationships with illegal operators as market undermining, he positions compliance as competitive advantage rather than regulatory burden.

This messaging may prove more effective than traditional harm-focused arguments, particularly with commercial stakeholders who view compliance costs as business overhead rather than strategic investment.

The emphasis on collective industry action suggests the Commission views this as sector-wide challenge requiring coordinated response rather than individual operator compliance issue.

According to UK Gambling Commission.

Last updated: 11 March 2026 with formatting changes only.

According to UK Gambling Commission.