Premier League, FA, EFL and WSL agree code of conduct over gambling deals
- Campaigners have criticised clubs over betting sponsors
- Voluntary framework to be implemented this season
The Premier League, together with the Football Association, English Football League and Women’s Super League, have released a code of conduct for gambling deals, less than 24 hours after campaigners accused top-flight clubs of milking cash from betting firms before a ban on front-of-shirt sponsors is introduced for the 2026-27 season.
The Premier League alongside the aforementioned stakeholders say they have drafted a voluntary framework to be implemented before the start of this season. Last year, Premier League clubs agreed to withdraw betting companies from the front of shirts from the end of the 2025-26 campaign.
On Tuesday, Bournemouth announced a “record-breaking” deal with the Asian betting firm bj88, taking the contingent of top-flight clubs to confirm a gambling company as their primary shirt sponsor for the coming campaign to 11 – up from eight last season. Crystal Palace and Wolves have returned to having betting firms as their shirt sponsors after deals with non-gambling businesses.
The authorities list four key principles behind their approach – protection, social responsibility, reinvestment and integrity – but say the overarching aim is to ensure gambling sponsorships are delivered in a responsible way and ensure they “limit the reach to children and those at risk of gambling-related harm”.
The code says competitions and clubs should only enter into agreements with a gambling company who is licensed by the Gambling Commission or part of a “white-label partnership”. It adds that areas of a stadium designated for the exclusive use of families should not display gambling sponsorship logos.
Quick Guide
How do I sign up for sport breaking news alerts?
Show
- Download the Guardian app from the iOS App Store on iPhone or the Google Play store on Android by searching for ‘The Guardian’.
- If you already have the Guardian app, make sure you’re on the most recent version.
- In the Guardian app, tap the Menu button at the bottom right, then go to Settings (the gear icon), then Notifications.
- Turn on sport notifications.
Aston Villa, Bournemouth, Brentford, Crystal Palace, Everton, Fulham, Leicester, Nottingham Forest, Southampton, West Ham and Wolves will display a gambling company on the front of their shirts. The Big Step, a charity founded in 2019 which is dedicated to removing gambling advertising in football, said clubs continue “to blindly sign these desperate deals for a few extra quid”.
The longstanding principal sponsor of the EFL’s three divisions – the Championship, League One and League Two – is SkyBet, who first partnered with the league in 2013-14. The EFL say the partnership is “built around safer gambling, including a memorandum of understanding that sets out how to deliver joint objectives in a socially responsible way”.