Argentina considers school campaigns to prevent youth online gambling

Senator Beatriz Ávila has introduced a bill that would create preventive campaigns in public and private schools to warn children and teenagers about the risks of online gambling and sports betting.

Argentina’s Senate is reviewing a new bill aimed at preventing gambling among minors through educational campaigns in schools. The initiative was introduced by national senator Beatriz Luisa Ávila and is registered as file 516/26 in the Senate. According to the official summary, the bill seeks to establish a programme for the prevention of gambling by minors through online betting in the educational environment.

The proposal was filed on April 16, 2026, formally reported on May 14 and sent to the Senate committees on Health, General Legislation, and Justice and Criminal Affairs. This means the measure is still under legislative review and has not yet been adopted as law.

Ávila’s initiative focuses on the growth of sports betting, online casinos and virtual lotteries among people under 18. According to SBC Noticias, the senator pointed to rising concern among teachers and schools over the spread of betting platforms in student environments, especially as teenagers gain easier access to mobile devices and digital payment tools.

The bill proposes pedagogical activities for students, specific training for educational institutions and awareness campaigns on the risks of digital betting. It also includes tools for detecting risky behaviour and mechanisms for referral to social and health services in possible cases of problematic gambling. The stated objective is to protect the physical and psychological health of students.

A key part of the proposal is its funding model. The text presented by Ávila reportedly provides for resources to come mainly from a charge equivalent to 1% of total online bets placed in the country, to be paid by companies in the sector. The bill also allows for state contributions and donations, with those funds exempt from taxes.

The initiative comes amid a wider national debate over gambling harm and online betting regulation. In October 2025, a plenary meeting of the Senate committees on Health, General Legislation, and Justice and Criminal Affairs discussed 28 bills related to the prevention of gambling addiction and the regulation of games of chance and online betting. The Senate reported that those proposals included national programmes and campaigns to address gambling addiction among children and adolescents.

For Argentina’s gambling market, the bill signals a growing shift from simple market regulation toward early prevention and public health policy. If approved, it could create new obligations for operators and place schools at the centre of the national response to youth gambling. The main challenge will be implementation: making prevention practical in classrooms while ensuring that licensed operators, illegal platforms and digital advertising are all addressed in a consistent way.