Who: The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) and Voodoo Doll Ltd t/a MOJO Manchester (MOJO)
Where: United Kingdom
When: 24 September 2025
Law stated as at: 15 October 2025
What happened:
The ASA has upheld two challenges against MOJO, following a proactive sweep of online alcohol advertising using its AI-driven Active Ad Monitoring system. The ruling concerned a paid-for social media ad for MOJO’s bar, featuring an image of Barney the Dinosaur, alongside the caption “T-wrecked” and the text “ONE TEQUILA, TWO TEQUILA, THREE TEQUILA, FLOOR – Barney”.
The ASA challenged whether the ad had particular appeal to under 18s and encouraged excessive consumption of alcohol.
Appeal to under 18s
Rule 18.14 of the UK Code of Non-broadcast Advertising and Direct and Promotional Marketing (CAP Code) states that ads must not be likely to appeal particularly to people under 18, especially by reflecting or being associated with youth culture. They should not feature or portray real or fictitious characters who are likely to appeal particularly to people under 18 in a way that might encourage the young to drink.
MOJO argued that the character “Barney” would resonate with its target audience of over 18s, given that the character dated from the 1980s and 1990s and was not an attempt to influence under 18s. In addition, MOJO argued that they had restricted their social media audience using the settings on the platform to over 18s.
The ASA considered that, although under 18s may not recognise Barney as a character from the TV show that aired in the mid-1990s to the early 2000s, the dinosaur’s brightly coloured, playful, friendly appearance, coupled with a simple counting rhythm in the text, was likely to appeal particularly to children. In addition, the ASA noted that the social media platform did not require stringent age verification upon sign-up, and MOJO had not used interest-based targeting to actively exclude likely under-18 audiences. The ASA therefore considered that under-18s had not been entirely excluded from the audience and that the ad breached the CAP Code’s rule 18.14.
Encouraging excessive drinking
Rule 18.1 of the CAP Code requires ads featuring or referencing alcohol to be socially responsible and not contain content that could lead to the adoption of “styles of drinking that are unwise”. For example, they should not encourage excessive drinking.
MOJO argued that the ad did not seek to incentivise or promote excessive alcohol consumption and that the use of Barney, together with the reference to “T-wrecked”, was intended as a humorous cautionary tale to prompt comment and discussion, not consumption.
The ASA acknowledged that the ad was intended to be amusing to the audience. However, the ASA considered that the phrase “ONE TEQUILA, TWO TEQUILA, THREE TEQUILA, FLOOR” would be likely to be interpreted as encouraging excessive drinking to the point of passing out. Additionally, the caption “T-wrecked” was understood by the ASA to be slang for being very drunk.
The ASA therefore found that the ad breached CAP Code rule 18.1.
Why this matters
This ruling highlights that alcohol-related ads containing humour or cartoon-style characters and childlike rhymes are likely to be seen as appealing to children, even when they are from a different era, intended for over 18s and behind nominal age-restriction settings. Phrases implying intoxication or collapse, even when presented as cautionary or comedic, are likely to be considered as encouraging excessive drinking. Advertisers should not simply rely on the age restriction settings provided by social media platforms when seeking to exclude under 18s from their ad audience. They should also consider carefully how images and messaging may be interpreted, regardless of intended audience demographics.
