Premier League Clubs Under Fire over Gambling Sponsorship Breaches

In a major move earlier this year, the Premier League, the FA, the Women’s Super League and the EFL agreed to a New Code of Conduct, enforcing restrictions on gambling advertising in soccer. Limiting gambling sponsorship seeks to reduce the exposure of children to gambling ads while protecting vulnerable individuals.

Clubs Fail to Comply with Sale of Adult Kits Without Gambling Logos

The aforementioned organizations agreed to completely ban gambling front-of-shirt sponsorships as of the 2026-2027 season. Moreover, in their decision announced in July, the Premier League, the Women’s Super League, the EFL and the FA greenlighted stricter rules for gambling marketing ahead of the upcoming ban.

Now, a newly released report suggests that several Premier League clubs are not complying with the rules they agreed to this summer. As announced by Manchester Evening News, it was uncovered through Pitch Inspection that six clubs do not comply with the new gambling sponsorship rules, particularly regarding the part that requires the sale of adult replica shirts without gambling logos.

Under the Code of Conduct for Gambling Related Agreements in Football, agreed upon by the four Leagues, a section requires the clubs to ensure the sale of replica kits without gambling logos. Section 3.5.2. reads: “Ensuring that mechanisms exist to enable supporters to have the ability to purchase adult replica kits that do not include gambling sponsorship logos, in the event that they are not otherwise available for purchase.”

The list of Premier League clubs that do not offer adult kits without gambling logos reportedly includes Aston Villa, Everton, Brentford, Nottingham Forest, Southampton and Fulham. Currently, Aston Villa’s sponsor is Betano, Stake.com sponsors Everton, while Hollywood Bets has an active deal with Brentford. On the other hand, Kaiyun is Nottingham Forest’s sponsor, while Southampton and Fulham have active deals with Rollbit and SBOTOP respectively.

Following the report’s release, Brentford addressed the claims in a statement via X. The popular soccer club wrote: “We have issued a clarification on this as the info from the club store was originally inaccurate – we do offer unsponsored kits which can be purchased in-store.”

Soccer Can’t Be Trusted on Gambling, Says Anti-gambling Group

Focusing on the bigger picture, nearly a dozen Premier League clubs have active sponsorships with gambling firms. While those deals do not breach the rules for the current season, as noted, all clubs are required to offer replica shirts without gambling logos. Moreover, per the rules, kits for children must not feature gambling logos at all.

“Six Premier League clubs are breaking new rules that state fans should be able to buy a shirt without a gambling sponsor,“

reads a statement released by The Big Step

The recent news caught the attention of the anti-gambling group that calls to end all gambling sponsorships and advertising in soccer, The Big Step. The campaign released a statement on the matter acknowledging that Premier League clubs failed to comply with the rules regarding the sale of fan shirts without gambling sponsors. “This is yet more evidence that football can’t be trusted on gambling – it’s time for the government to end this nonsense,” added The Big Step.

Ahead of the upcoming front-of-shirt gambling sponsorship ban, research data estimated that Premier League clubs may lose more than £126 million ($167.8 million) after the implementation of the prohibition.