A study commissioned by the British Ministry of Culture, Media and Sport called for urgent joint regulation of cross-border virtual skin fairs. The study noted that some skin gaming sites were more popular than traditional network gaming platforms and posed risks to young players.
The report calls for a more rigorous age-validation process and for addressing the cross-border operation of the platform through the development of international monitoring and control standards. The report emphasizes that the regulatory objective should be to close loopholes, protect vulnerable groups and ensure that virtual skin fairs are properly regulated. Virtual skin games involve the investment of virtual objects in online games. This form is closely linked to the trophy-box mechanism, which raises concerns about its prevalence in young playhouses. Critics have pointed out that the trophy box, which is randomly rewarded, allows young people to engage in gambling activities at the age at which they are vulnerable to gambling, thus making it a “knocking brick” towards traditional gambling.
According to the report: “There is an urgent need for joint regulation of jurisdictions at the policy level to explicitly classify skin gambling as a form of gambling and to require operators to comply with the same standards as traditional gambling platforms. It shall include compulsory age certification, transparency requirements, fair guarantees and agreements between directors of gambling.” In addition, game developers must take responsibility for the gambling mechanisms that exist within the game and ensure that a safe barrier is in place to protect minors. Gaps in the protection of vulnerable groups should be filled through the strict enforcement of age limits and the establishment of hierarchical protection mechanisms in play environments.” The study compares skin gambling with traditional forms of gambling in terms of the dimensions of game design, participation, user graphics and the hazards of gambling, and focuses on the risks to vulnerable groups of skin gambling and the differences in its accessibility compared to regulated gambling.The report states that the anonymity provided by skin gambling platforms, the absence of age verification of the use of links and the state of the regulatory vacuum make such activities easily accessible to minors, independently of the legal provisions of specific jurisdictions.
Although the British Lottery Commission continues to block illegal websites in the country, the report found that “a lack of oversight, lack of qualified standards for responsible gambling on the platform, and potential exposure to risk may lead to harm, including bad gambling behaviour during adolescence”. The study confirmed that of the over 50 skin gambling sites available in the United Kingdom, out of 45 for which traffic data were available, 6.9 million independent visits were made globally in February 2025, of which 3.93 per cent were by British users. The nine sites with the highest volume of traffic were visited millions per month. The data show that the most popular skin gambling sites have a global monthly access beyond the old-line gaming platforms of Betfred and Betvictor. Cross-visiting on the website shows that skin gambling platforms are usually active on multiple platforms, while the use of the Steam platform and the live website of popular games is highly correlated with skin gambling.
The analysis of data on the web site is supported by academic research: skin gambling is disproportionately high among young men, especially adolescents. Young people aged 11-14 years are more than twice as likely to be involved in skin gambling as those aged 22-24 years, indicating that gambling behaviour may be permeating to younger age groups at a faster than expected rate. The report emphasizes that “most skin gambling games are highly similar to contemporary gaming platforms such as Stake, which include both traditional gambling elements and non-traditional opportunity games such as trophy-opening, electronic dice, mine clearance, air drops, etc. Some of the game mechanisms are the same as traditional gambling – Some trophy-box designs include the characteristics of tiger machines, such as approximations of error, variable incentive mechanisms, and double games replace traditional digital analog wheel games with game icons.” Research has identified many known harmful designs: approximation of error mechanisms, disguised loss of victory, high frequency events (quick game rhythms). Many contemporary skin gambling games also create “control hallucinations” by allowing players to set risk parameters and make in-play decisions based on established results. Some of the games offer a “player-to-play” model that stimulates competition and may exacerbate risk-taking behaviour.
While skin gambling is consistent with the definition of gambling under British law and should be regulated by gambling regulations, most platforms operate unlicensed, often illegally, away from the jurisdiction of national regulatory bodies. This poses a major challenge to consumer protection, especially for adolescents who may be exposed to services. The report also calls for the strengthening of long-term impact studies, focusing on the long-term impact of skin gambling on the psychological behaviour of children and adolescents and how such exposures shape gambling behaviour patterns. “Exploring effective harm-reduction strategies and interventions in a game environment is essential. In addition, it is important to address the challenges and opportunities of the transboundary regulation of skin gambling platforms in order to address this global problem.” In 2022, the British Ministry of Culture, Media and Sport, then led by Nadine Dorris, finally did not ban trophies and instead formed a technical working group that included games companies and social platforms, and issued an industry self-regulation code in August 2023 requiring that games containing trophies must be clearly marked.
