While anti-gambling activists north of the border are gagging on their haggis, following the news that blue chip William Hill is to sponsor all four leagues of Scottish professional football in a three-year deal that started this season, down south even more gaming companies have upped their sponsorship of the English Premier League (EPL), the world’s most watched national football competition.

And bet365, the iGaming leaders who don’t just own a team–England’s second-tier Stoke City–but arguably the city, Stoke-on-Trent, itself, have gone one better by nabbing a three-year betting stake in the UEFA Champions League.

With the EPL set to ban all gambling front-of-shirt sponsorship by the 2026-2027 season, this flurry of commercial activity has been likened by wags to ‘playing the fiddle while Rome burns’.

This season 11 of the Premier League’s 20 clubs–up from seven last season–are sporting gambling company sponsorship on their shirts in deals that are worth, collectively, in excess of £60 million (US$78.25m) a year.

Pressure

Under intense pressure from gaming regulatory authorities, and public anti-gambling pressure groups, English football clubs agreed to the post-dated front-of-shirt ban last season; although in a compromise sleeve sponsorship will continue for the foreseeable future.

So which EPL teams, in alphabetical order, have prominent sponsorship deals with gambling companies this season?

Aston Villa has Kaizen Gaming’s Betano brand emblazoned on its famous claret and blue shirts; Bournemouth have ditched Dafabet and replaced them with another sports betting outfit, DJ88, in a lucrative two-year deal.

Brentford continue with South Africa’s Hollywood Bets; Crystal Palace have replaced online car dealership Cinch with iGaming Net88; Everton have got down with rapper Drake’s Stake; Fulham have struck a relationship with Isle-of-Man-based online bookmaker SBOTOP.

Newly-promoted Leicester City have got game with Bitcoin and cryptocurrency entrepreneurs BC Game; Nottingham Forest are sponsored by Asia’s Kaiyun Sports.

Southampton, also newly-back in the league, have gone crypto and NFT with Rollbit; while West Ham remain with Betway.

And last but not least; although they’ll be lucky to survive another season in the top flight; Wolves are with yet another South East Asian iGaming force, DeBet.

Controversy

Football’s promotional links with gambling is fraught with controversy.

“It is shameful that many football clubs, who once proudly promoted community causes, are now taking money from the gambling industry regardless of what gambling addiction does to their fans and their players,” said Annie Ashton, whose husband Luke died from gambling-related suicide and who is now studying a PhD on the issue.

“Gambling addiction is linked to suicide and football clubs should not be walking hand-in-hand with the industry that causes such destruction.

“It is time to kick gambling advertising out of football.”

Matt Zarb-Cousin, Director of Clean Up Gambling, said: “The government should look again at whether gambling advertising should be permitted at all, taking into account the harm the sector is doing to children and the wider population.”

Meantime, bet365–the world’s richest privately-owned iGaming company–has become the first official sports betting partner of the UEFA Champions League (UCL) in a three-year deal.

Responsible Gaming

“As the first sports betting brand to sponsor the UEFA Champions League, we’re delighted to be joining a roster of high-profile premier brand partners at such an exciting time for the competition,” said Alex Sefton, bet365 Global Chief Marketing Officer.

And Guy-Laurent Epstein, (pictured left), UEFA’s Director of Marketing, argued:

“As one of the leading online sports betting brands, with over 100 million customers, bet365 is dedicated to enhancing the excitement of sport while promoting responsible gaming practices.”

Commenting on his football nation’s three-year tie-in with evoke-owned William Hill, Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) CEO Neil Doncaster asserted: “[We] shouldn’t be stuffy about gambling.

“I think it’s important to stress that gambling is a legitimate and lawful leisure activity that is enjoyed by millions of people.”

Per Widerström, CEO of evoke, added: “This is our biggest sponsorship engagement. It’s very important for us.

The SPFL is the most supported league in Europe per capita. It’s an amazing platform to start with.

“[We share] the passion and love for football. It’s important for us in light of our presence and our heritage in Scotland.

“The William Hill brand is 90-years-old and we have more than 200 betting shops in Scotland. Like football, we are an integral part of the local communities.”