Football fans take the mickey out of problem gambling ad
ANN/The Strait Times/NATIONAL COUNCIL ON PROBLEM GAMBLING
SINGAPORE—It was an advertisement with the best intentions—to discourage people from betting their hard-earned money during the Fifa World Cup.
Created by the National Council on Problem Gambling and screened during games, the commercial features a group of boys discussing their favourite teams. At the end, a boy named Andy says crestfallenly: “I hope Germany will win. My dad bet all my savings on them.”
Article continues after this advertisementAs it turned out, what a bet it would have been.
There was more than a little irony when the clip was screened at half-time during this morning’s Brazil-Germany match, when the Germans were already up 5-0.
It did not escape the attention of viewers, who saw the humor in the unfortunate scriptwriting behind poor Andy’s line. Even politicians joined in the fray.
Article continues after this advertisementManpower Minister Tan Chuan-Jin had this to say on his Facebook page: “Bad timing. Looks like the boy’s father who bet all his savings on Germany will be laughing all the way to the bank! 0-5 to Germany. Wow. Any guesses as to final score?”
Minister of State for Trade and Industry Teo Ser Luck posted a comment as well: “Germany beat Brazil 7-1! Brazil need to find out what went wrong and I need to find the script-writer for the gambling control advertisement.”
Meanwhile, Twitter user Sgag_Sg said:
This boy and his dad must be happy like a bird now! Booked Europe holiday already!
#WorldCup2014 #FailAd pic.twitter.com/S78wOCj7WN
— Mr. SGAG (@SGAG_SG) July 8, 2014
Now, couldn’t the scriptwriter have picked another team, say England?
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