The House of Commons has rejected a proposal by Liberal Democrat MPs to ban all forms of gambling-related advertisement and sponsorship in English football.
Lib Dem MPs Max Wilkinson and Lee Dillon wanted the bill to include a duty on English football clubs “not to promote or engage in advertising and sponsorship related to gambling.”
Some members of the party have been consistent on this matter in recent months – Lord Addington suggested back in March that football “might be one place we could do without” gambling advertisement and Wilkinson sang from the same hymn sheet in April.
The Football Governance Bill was passed through the House of Commons on July 8, with 415 voting in favour and 98 against – but the proposal to include a ban on gambling advertisement was not included.
11 Of 20 Premier League Clubs In 2024-25 Had A Gambling Sponsor
The Premier League will introduce a self-imposed ban on front-of-shirt gambling sponsors from the start of the 2026-27 season, but as it stands UK betting sites play a huge part in English football.
Teams will still be allowed to work with gambling operators in different ways, such as logos on training kits and official partnerships can remain in place like branding around the stadium and on social media platforms.
In the 2024-25 season, a total of 11 teams featured a sports betting app on the front of their shirts. That number was up from eight the season prior.
Research from GlobalData revealed the combined value of shirt sponsorship deals involving Premier League clubs and gambling companies in 2024-25 totalled over £100 million.
Gambling sponsorship deals are lucrative especially for smaller clubs who traditionally generate less money from shirt sales. The Big Six of Arsenal, Manchester United, Manchester City, Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea haven’t had a gambling related front-of-shirt sponsor since Spurs ended their partnership with Mansion in 2010.
Daniel Haddad, head of commercial strategy at sports agency Octagon, told The Athletic that a newly-promoted club can generate around £5m to £6m from having a gambling sponsor on the front of their shirt compared to £2.5m to £3m without.
Industry experts believe the upcoming ban could cut income by up to 60%.
Joe Lyons is a betting industry writer for GamblingIndustryNews with years of experience on reputable gambling websites. Joe specialises in long form content in the world of sports betting and gambling. Joe is recognised as an expert in sports fields such as horse racing, soccer, NFL and NBA.
