29,000 gambling ads in Premier League weekendpublished at 15:21 British Summer Time 27 September
The number of betting adverts during the opening weekend of the Premier League season almost trebled compared to last year, new research says.
Researchers analysed Premier League coverage in the UK across TV – including pitchside hoardings and shirt logos – as well as radio and social media.
They counted more than 29,000 gambling messages, a 165% increase on the opening weekend a year ago.
West Ham’s match against Aston Villa contained close to 6,500 gambling messages – about 30 every minute.
The authors of the report – the University of Bristol business school, funded by a grant from the charity Gamble Aware – has called the industry’s attempt to self-regulate “wholly inadequate and tokenistic”.
They say their report shows fans and children are being put at risk because they are being exposed to gambling advertising.
The Betting and Gaming Council, which represents the gambling industry, criticised the research, saying it “fundamentally misunderstands both advertising, and the way in which it is strictly regulated”.