The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) maintained its decision on the marketing actions carried out by Arsenal Football Club, rejecting all challenges to its initial decision.
In August of this year, promotional materials posted on Arsenal’s Facebook page and website fell short of required standards in three different respects. The promotions, all related to a cryptocurrency-based product called the ‘Arsenal Fan Token’, were deemed irresponsible and misleading by ASA.
First, all ads were considered irresponsible because they took advantage of customers’ inexperience and trivialized investments in cryptocurrency. Second, the advertisements were declared to be misleading as they did not illustrate the risk of the investment.
Thirdly, they were misleading because it was not clear that the promotional token was a cryptocurrency, which could only be obtained by opening an account and exchanging it with another cryptocurrency – which then had to be purchased.
ASA did not accept the arguments presented by Arsenal
Arsenal, which partnered with the company specialized in the Fan Token market, Socios.com, challenged ASA’s decisions in all three areas. The football club’s main argument centered on the fact that “Fan Tokens were utility tokens used to encourage fan participation.”
“Therefore, they were materially different from cryptocurrencies, which were virtual currencies used as a means of payment. Fan Tokens were promoted responsibly, reminding fans that they only needed a token to vote on club decisions, that they should only buy what they could afford, and they included information on the site with risk warnings.”
In the last point raised by the club, he argued that the target audience of the advertising action was widely aware of the cryptocurrency market and that Socios.com is recognized in the football community as a cryptocurrency platform.
ASA rejected Arsenal’s arguments, refuting the football club’s claim that cryptocurrency is a well-known market, and promotions made it clear that an investment was needed.
English club ads will not be shown again
As such, the entity has defined that ads should not be shown again, and Arsenal must ensure that any future promotions do not trivialize the investment, and do not irresponsibly take advantage of the customers’ lack of experience.
