LeoVegas Ordered to Remove Online Casino Ads in New Zealand

We’ve noticed New Zealand regulators stepping up enforcement again, this time ordering LeoVegas to remove online casino ads that were being shown to Kiwi audiences.

According to the Department of Internal Affairs, LeoVegas was found advertising its online casino services across major New Zealand-facing platforms. That’s not permitted under current law. While New Zealand players are allowed to access offshore casinos, operators themselves are not allowed to actively advertise those services within the country.

From our perspective as a comparison site, this outcome isn’t unexpected. Advertising rules around offshore casinos have been clear for some time, and enforcement has become noticeably stricter over the past year. Regulators are no longer just looking at who is operating, but also where and how casinos are promoting themselves.

In this case, the issue appears to be that the ads were running on well-known platforms used by New Zealanders, rather than being generic or globally targeted campaigns. Once marketing is clearly aimed at a local audience, it crosses a line under existing regulations.

The order means LeoVegas must pull all advertising that targets New Zealand traffic, including placements on large digital platforms, social media, and any affiliate-driven promotions that are clearly NZ-focused. If those ads are not removed, further enforcement action could follow.

We see this as part of a broader clean-up ahead of New Zealand’s planned online casino licensing system. Until that framework is in place, regulators appear determined to rein in grey-area advertising and set clearer boundaries for offshore operators.

For players, nothing changes in terms of access to offshore casinos. For operators and affiliates, however, the message is becoming harder to ignore: advertising to New Zealand audiences on major local platforms is no longer being tolerated.

We’ll keep tracking these developments closely, as actions like this are likely to shape which brands remain visible in the New Zealand market over the coming months.