PlayCity Partners with Kick to Block Illegal Gambling Ads

Ukraine’s gambling regulator PlayCity has opened direct channels with streaming service Kick and other digital platforms to remove unauthorized betting advertisements. The initiative launched on Monday to address the growing use of social media by unlicensed operators.

Under the new framework, PlayCity will coordinate with TikTok, YouTube, Meta, Twitch, Viber, Google, and Kick, a live-streaming service launched in 2022, to verify content and restrict non-compliant accounts. The regulator screened 425 public complaints submitted through an online form introduced last month, including 19 reports in June.

This monitoring has already led to the suspension of 37 social media channels, reaching an audience of over 895,000 followers. Two Kick streams were removed during the final week following regulator alerts, contributing to a total of 785 restricted profiles since the campaign began.

Enforcement Procedures and Penalties

The compliance review operates in two phases. Platforms first receive takedown referrals to remove suspected material, after which PlayCity investigates the advertisers behind the content. Confirmed violations trigger financial penalties of approximately UAH 5.2 million ($155,678) per offense. When public registries do not identify the responsible company, law enforcement agencies assist with further investigation. According to PlayCity’s inaugural annual report, the regulator issued fines exceeding UAH 988 million for general legal breaches and roughly UAH 80 million for advertising violations last year. Complainants receive notifications when reported material does not meet the legal definition of gambling advertising.