Sports, Gigs, and TikToks: Multi-Channel Advertising of Oral Nicotine Pouches

Oral nicotine pouches, which contain fewer harmful constituents than traditional tobacco products, are being increasingly marketed and sold. In this perspective piece, we use images we collected in Great Britain between 2021 and 2023, along with a social media scan of Instagram and TikTok in 2023 to analyse the marketing strategies of these pouches on three key marketing channels — online media, sports sponsorships, and out-of-home advertising. Findings reveal the extensive use of visually appealing content, influencer partnerships, and event sponsorships aimed at potentially young and naive audiences. Despite this, survey data indicates that the current impact of nicotine pouch marketing on public health in Great Britain remains minimal. However, a notable shift in public health impact could arise if these marketing efforts start to bear more fruit. The study underscores the need for balanced policy measures that increase access to reduced harm alternatives for existing tobacco and nicotine users while minimising exposure to youth and non-users. Continuous monitoring and regulatory adjustments are essential to address the evolving landscape of nicotine pouch marketing.

snus -a smokeless tobacco product which is substantially less harmful than combustible cigarettes [3] .Nonetheless, they deliver high levels of nicotine, which can lead to dependence [2] .As such, their use should be discouraged among youth and individuals who would otherwise avoid nicotine entirely [4] .
Positive public health outcomes may occur if these products primarily serve as complete substitutes for people using cigarettes, e-cigarettes, or heated tobacco products.However, negative impacts could emerge if marketing strategies, particularly those targeting youth-accessible channels, attract young people and those who would otherwise be nicotine naïve.To determine the overall public health impact of nicotine pouches, one must balance the number of existing tobacco and nicotine users who completely switch to nicotine pouches against the number of young and otherwise nicotine-naïve users being attracted to nicotine use.Understanding the net effect on public health requires a comprehensive analysis of these concurrent trends and the relative scale of each.
In the UK and many European Union (EU) countries, nicotine pouches fall outside tobacco or e-cigarette regulation and so are only regulated under general consumer product safety regulations [5] .This gap allows manufacturers to market their products on various channels, mirroring those historically used by the tobacco industry [6] .This raises the question: How are manufacturers of nicotine pouches advertising their products under the current regulatory framework?To address this, we explore three key marketing channels -online media, sports sponsorships, and out-of-home advertising.We used images collected between 2021 and 2023, and data derived from a snowball sampling procedure of corporate nicotine-pouch accounts on Instagram and related hashtags on TikTok, conducted in October 2023 [7] (data is available on an online repository: https://osf.io/27cen/).

Online Marketing
Both VELO (manufactured by British American Tobacco; BAT) and Nordic Spirit (by Japan Tobacco International; JTI) use corporate media strategies by actively promoting their products through their respective Instagram accounts [8][9] .Our scan revealed that VELO operates 17 official accounts across countries both within and outside the EU.The most popular among these are @velo.pakistanand @velo.globalwith 50,500 and 40,500 followers, respectively.These accounts predominately display visually appealing images of nicotine pouches and young adults, often integrated with lifestyle appeals such as travel, sports, and music (Figure 1).
In addition to visual advertising, these accounts host competitions that offer Instagram users the chance to win holidays, tech gadgets, and event vouchers, in exchange for engagement activities like liking or sharing posts, following the account, and tagging friends.While these accounts do implement age verification and nicotine addiction warnings, they also engage in paid partnerships with influencers with thousands to millions of followers who are not age restricted [4] .
These approaches are similar to the Juul phenomenon, which increased the product's appeal among youth and individuals who would have otherwise avoided nicotine entirely [10] .TikTok, with its substantial young user base, serves as another social media platform for nicotine pouches.As of October 11, 2023, the hashtag #zyn had 459.4 million views, followed by #nicotinepouches at 83.8 million views [5] .Videos under these hashtags feature themes of nicotine addiction, celebrity sightings (e.g., videos of famous sports players spotted with nicotine pouches), reviews and comedy.As with vaping-related content on TikTok [11] , most videos are available without age verification and lack content warnings and so may attract young viewers who would otherwise be nicotine naive.
Nicotine pouch advertisements also extends to web-based online platforms, including newspaper websites, platforms serving FIFA video game communities, and crossword puzzle websites, as illustrated in Figure 2.

Sport Sponsorship
Tobacco industry sponsorship of sports, most notably Philip Morris's Marlboro sponsorship of Formula One racing (F1), began in 1968 [12] .Although the 2005 EU Tobacco Advertising Directive [13] and the 2006 Federation International Automobile's banned tobacco advertising in F1, Phillip Morris adapted its marketing strategies, transitioning from explicit branding to more subtle, suggestive designs (Figure 3).These designs mimicked the appearance of the distinctive red and white Marlboro logo, serving as a form of 'alibi' marketing [12] .Though the barcode design was phased out in May 2010, the practice of alibi marketing continues in the industry.
Presently, BAT's VELO adopts a similar strategy by sponsoring the McLaren F1 team and featuring their trademark on team apparel and cars [14][15] .In the Netherlands, where the sale of nicotine pouches is prohibited and health organisations are advocating for the removal of such branding, "VELO" is reworded to "LOVE" on the McLaren cars (Figure 3) [15] .This form of advertising gains extensive reach as races are aired globally, often in digital and online spaces [6] .These spaces often blur international borders and regulatory jurisdictions, making it challenging to enforce domestic marketing laws, even in countries with strict advertising policies.Beyond motorsports, professional e-sports and football players have been increasingly seen using these products, often citing leisure, relaxation and their perceived performance enhancing effects as reasons for their use [16][17] .In the U.S., similar patterns are observed with smokeless tobacco products having long been entrenched within baseball culture [18] .

Out-of-home Marketing
Public spaces in the UK have become key advertising avenues for nicotine pouches, as evidenced by billboards placed in high-traffic areas, such as near convenience stores and in busy train stations (Figure 4).Events attended by youth and young adults are also targeted; both Nordic Spirit and VELO set up pop-up stalls at major music festivals and distribute free samples [19] .At the point of sale, nicotine pouches are often displayed alongside candies and snacks, clearly visible to youth.How effective has this advertising been?
Despite this widespread advertising, data from a large British survey shows that nicotine pouch use is rare in Great Britain, with only one in every 400 adults reporting their use in October 2020 [20] .By August 2023, the prevalence only modestly increased to an estimated one in every 300 adults (Supplementary Figure 1).Most users are either people who were current or former smokers (86%).Around two-thirds (68%) are men.

Conclusions and considerations
To date, nicotine pouch marketing has not significantly impacted public health, either positively or negatively.However, should the multichannel marketing efforts described above start to bear more fruit, there could be a noticeable shift in their

Figure 1 .
Figure 1.Screenshots from Instagram accounts @nordicspirit_uk (top row) and @velo.unitedkingdom(bottom row) in 2023 featuring (1) a contest offering £200 bar spend for post engagements, (2) a promotion for the limited-edition Nordic Spirit watermelon flavour in strong strength, (3) an invitation to sample Nordic Spirit for free, (4) a McLaren Formula 1 experience giveaway for user interaction, (5) a crossword reinforcing brand association with new beginnings, new adventures, and new moments, and (6) a promotional video for Tomorrowland Winter 2023 festival in collaboration with VELO.

Figure 2 .
Figure 2.Web-based advertisements of nicotine pouches across news, gaming, and puzzle websites.

Figure 3 .
Figure 3. Comparative visuals of F1 cars showcasing the evolution of industry branding strategies.Featuring overt Marlboro trademark vs subliminal red and white barcode design, which would blur into a semblance of the Marlboro logo at high speeds, alongside trademark "VELO" branding vs reworded "LOVE" branding during the Dutch Grand Prix.

Figure 4 .
Figure 4. Out-of-home marketing of nicotine pouches in the UK from 2021-2023, showcasing (1) nicotine pouches displayed alongside vaping products and everyday consumer goods such as candies and snacks; (2) a billboard near a pharmacy promoting the traveller-friendly appeal of nicotine pouches; (3) VELO's branding on escalator handrails at the Oxford Circus transport hub, asking onlookers to search their product, explaining how to use their product and handing out free samples to people who self-identified as being a nicotine user; (4) Nordic Spirit's interactive Rock Hero setup designed to attract festival-goers, and (5) Nordic Spirit's music festival van.