Google Ads bans affiliate & horse racing comparison sites in US
Google has just introduced a significant change to its advertising policy for the gaming sector by prohibiting affiliated sites, comparison sites, and recommendation platforms linked to horse racing from advertising within its advertising ecosystem. The measure, effective since December 1, excludes aggregators, tipsters, and any external promoters related to horse race betting from the Google Ads system.
What changes with the new policy
The adjustment was directly incorporated into Google's official policy registry and began to be applied immediately. From now on, any ad that drives traffic to comparison pages or affiliate sites focused on horse race betting will be automatically blocked. The company also canceled all previously granted certifications to companies in this segment and closed the door to new applicants.
Google thus establishes a clear distinction between two categories of market players:
- Prohibited: affiliates, comparators, tipsters, and external platforms.
- Allowed: licensed U.S. operators, who can continue advertising their own racing products as long as they comply with responsible gaming certifications and age restrictions.
Recent changes in the Google ecosystem
Although Google did not provide further explanations about this decision, the ban adds to a series of regulatory adjustments the company has been implementing in 2024 and 2025. In October, for example, it reclassified lottery casinos as gambling rather than social games, triggering stricter advertising requirements.
In parallel, YouTube updated its content policies to protect minors, restricting videos with references to “social casino” type gambling, extreme violence, or torture, which as of November 17 can only be viewed by those over 18 years old.
Scope of the restriction
The new policy covers all Google Ads campaigns in the United States, including:
- search ads,
- display,
- video,
- YouTube inventory,
- and the entire associated network.
The Gmail and Shopping formats had already been previously excluded from gambling promotion and continue under the same restriction.
With this decision, Google once again tightens its advertising policy on betting, aligning with a global trend of increased oversight over operators, affiliates, and digital acquisition platforms.
Tags: United States, Google, Google betting advertising, Google affiliate advertising, Google horse racing advertising