The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has confirmed its intention to investigate a Paddy Power TV advert after receiving more than 400 complaints.
In the advert, which launched last month as part of the betting firm's World Cup campaign, a blindfolded footballer was depicted accidentally kicking a cat into a tree.
Despite being approved by ad body Clearcast, the ad attracted over 400 complaints from viewers about its offensive nature and potential to encourage cruelty to animals.
Some complainants also expressed concern that the ad was offensive in the way it portrayed sight-impaired people.
In response, the ASA confirmed that it will launch a full investigation into the ad to gauge whether it breached the advertising code.
The 30-second film actually featured several players from England's team at the World Blind Football Championships, but that fact was not made sufficiently clear.
In March, Paddy Power was ordered to scrap a seperate TV advert featuring four wheelchair-bound actors hurriedly leaving an Indian restaurant without paying their bill.
HINT: you can turn-off annoying pop-ups in YouTube videos by clicking first on the white triangle in the bottom right-hand corner and then the red flag which appears above it.
