SARGF condemns World Sports Betting promotion at Pretoria preschool
Regulation2 min read
In brief
- SARGF condemned a World Sports Betting promotion in a preschool classroom at Cornwall Hill College, Pretoria.
- The promotion included a prize-wheel spin and an extra reward offer to a teacher with an active betting account.
- The college's management and preschool principal apologised, saying school leadership was not told in advance.
Footage posted on social media shows World Sports Betting (WSB) staff running a commercial promotion inside a Cornwall Hill College preschool classroom in Pretoria, and the South African Responsible Gambling Foundation (SARGF) condemned the safeguarding lapse involving children.
The promotion followed a radio competition that a staff member at the school had won. Representatives of WSB came onto the grounds and ran a "prize-wheel spin" with young children watching. The teacher was promised extra money if proof of a live World Sports Betting account could be shown.
Critics say the event may have breached Section 15 of the National Gambling Act, which bars gambling promotions aimed at minors. Regulators, child-safety advocates, public figures and community members are raising questions about how approval was given. Their demands include tougher oversight, severe penalties and a prohibition on gambling promotion at educational venues.
Both the college's executive management and the preschool principal issued an apology. Their explanation was that school leaders had received no advance notice of the promotional arrangement.
Since the incident, the SARGF has engaged with WSB, the school's management, provincial licensing authorities, the NGB and the DBE. The incident is described as evidence of broader systemic failures in protecting minors, rather than an isolated mistake. On school grounds, the SARGF wants school leaders to allow no marketing activations, sponsorships or prize draws by betting, gambling or lottery operators.