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Key highlights
- Premier League clubs are set to pass a vote to prohibit betting companies from appearing in front of shirts.
- Eight of the current 20 English top-flight clubs boast gambling sponsorships as their main front-of-shirt sponsors.
- A final vote on the ban is expected to take place in the Premier League summer meeting in June, but clubs might be allowed a three-year transition on already existing deals.
- Serie A clubs had not been permitted to carry Sports betting shirt sponsors since 2019, while La Liga clubs faced similar restrictions ahead of the 2021-22 season.
Premier League clubs are on the verge of agreeing to a decision to ban gambling companies from advertising in front of their shirts.
Sponsors have always been an important source of income for Premier League clubs over the years, and this has made partnerships between betting companies and clubs very much common.
Ahead of the expected release of a white paper on gambling by the United Kingdom government officials in April, Premier League clubs are keen on agreeing to a ban to avoid the government implementing legislation that prohibits gambling sponsorships on shirts entirely.
A consensus vote on the matter is expected to be delivered at the Premier League’s summer meeting in June, but a majority of teams would support the ban if a three-year transition period is granted, to allow clubs the time to see out current contracts and source new non-betting sponsors. Sleeve sponsorships will still be allowed.
Of the 20 sides currently in the Premier League, eight have gambling companies as their front-of-shirt sponsors. Here are clubs, betting sponsors, and year of contract expiry
Club – Sponsor (Contract Expiry)
- Bournemouth – Dafabet (2024)
- Brentford Hollywoodbets (2023)
- Everton Stake.com (multi-year)
- Fulham W88 (2023)
- Leeds SBOTOP (multi-year)
- Newcastle Fun88 (2023)
- Southampton Sportsbet.io (2024)
- West Ham Betway (2025)
Newcastle’s, Brentford’s, and Fulham’s deals are expected to expire in June, so they must look elsewhere for a primary commercial partner.
Aston Villa teamed up with Online Casino company, BK8 for next season. Coincidentally, the length of the new deal is three years.
Brighton and Hove Albion chairman, Tony Bloom has been a big supporter of the ban:
“From a personal point of view, it’s really important to be aware of children seeing gambling or betting advertising on the shirt in particular, because they buy the shirts,” Bloom, who made fortunes from sports gambling stated.
“I don’t think having gambling sponsorship on shirts is good, but I understand that for some clubs, particularly clubs down the leagues with much less revenue, the gambling companies pay the best so it’s a difficult decision to turn them down.
“Although there is gambling advertising all around, I just think on the shirts it’s the most obvious, so that would give me the most concern.”
Not betting sponsors, then who?
Gambling sponsorships represent a fast and effective way for top-flight clubs to rake in revenues, but the influence of the sector on English football has been of great concern.
The heavy advertisement exposes children and vulnerable people to an addictive product.
This potential ban on betting partnerships would likely mean clubs will have their income cut by between £5 million ($6.2 million) and £10 million ($12.3 million) per season. Clubs’ commercial teams now have to diversify in pursuit of other shirt sponsors.
None of the traditional ‘Big Six’ sides have a Betting company as their front-of-shirt sponsors, therefore others will have to rethink their strategies.
Industries involved in Football shirt sponsorships.
- AirlinesAirlines are the main sponsors of two of England’s biggest clubs – Arsenal and Man City. Etihad has been involved with City since 2009, while Arsenal has been sponsored by Emirates for the past 20 years. Both companies have naming rights to the stadiums of their respective clubs.
- Financial servicesA mixture of banks, insurance, and trading companies make up the financial sector sponsors of 5 of the 20 top-flight English clubs. American Express and Standard Chartered are the shirt sponsors of Brighton and Liverpool. The Brighton sponsorship deal includes naming rights for the AmEx stadium. Tottenham, Leicester, and Wolves are the others.
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Man United (Team Viewer – Technology), Chelsea (Three – Communications), Crystal Palace (Clinch – Car retailer), Aston Villa (Carzoo – Car retailer), and Nottingham Forest (UNHCR – Refugee Agency) make up the rest.
According to SportingPedia, The companies from Gambling, Online Trading, and Car Retail industries are investing the most into the top 5 European leagues.
They are responsible for injecting money into 30 of the 98 clubs across the Premier League, La Liga, Serie A, Ligue 1, and the Bundesliga.
The other sectors aiming at the display of football shirts are Food and Beverage (F&B) (9.2%), Travel (8.2%), Technology (7.1%), Real Estate (7.1%), and Finance (7.1%).
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