The UK government is looking to get tough on advertising by unlicensed gambling operators by preventing partnerships with British sports teams, including Premier League clubs.
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) confirmed that it is gearing up for a consultation on sports sponsorship, with the aim of mitigating the risks associated with the illegal market.
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy stated: “It’s not right that unlicensed gambling operators can sponsor some of our biggest football clubs, raising their profile and potentially drawing fans towards sites that don’t meet our regulatory standards.”
From the beginning of the next season, Premier League teams will be banned from agreeing front-of-shirt sponsorships from the gambling industry, following a league-wide decision made in 2023.
However, UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) rules state that sports teams like Premier League clubs can maintain partnerships with operators not licensed in the UK as long as customers in the UK cannot access the platforms.
Premier League sides such as Fulham (SBOTOP), Bournemouth (bj88), Wolves (DEBET) and Burnley (96.com) have maintained links to unlicensed gambling companies, which DCMS claims often lack measures to protect consumers and fail to adhere to responsible advertising standards.
In the case of SBOTOP and DEBET, the operators accessed the UK through a white-label agreement with TGP Europe. However, TGP exited the UK after the UKGC issued the firm a £3.3m penalty for due diligence and AML failures.
Though a significant step to curtail gambling visibility, the Premier League’s ban is limited to front-of-shirt sponsorships, meaning teams can still maintain links to the gambling industry through shirt sleeve and training wear partnerships, as well as activations on the hoardings that surround pitches.
Labour’s push to tackle the unlicensed sector would go way beyond these rules and seek to eliminate the visibility of the black market.
“It’s not right that unlicensed gambling operators can sponsor some of our biggest football clubs, raising their profile and potentially drawing fans towards sites that don’t meet our regulatory standards,” Nandy added.
The consultation will begin in Spring, and no timeline has been laid out as to when any new guidelines will be implemented.
