In the year 2000, the number of Premier League and Championship Clubs sponsored by a betting company was 0%. Now, eighteen years later, nearly 60% of teams are sponsored by gambling firms.

This rather rapid evolution may not be surprising given the popularity of online sports betting. However, researchers are concerned that English football leagues and clubs may be too dependent on these sponsorships, and worry about the affect the increasing number of gambling adverts will have on young fans.

Gambling is the leading industry of English football sponsorships

The betting industry’s entrance into the UK’s FC world began with Betfair’s sponsorship of Fullham back in the 2002/03 season. It has grown ever since, with more gambling brands partnering with teams every year.

As bookmakers – especially online bookies - began to dominate sponsorships, they gradually muscled out the industry that had once been ubiquitous in the Premier League – beer. Finally, in the summer of 2017, the last remaining beer sponsor in the league, Chang, was pushed out by SportPesa, when the betting brand struck a deal with Everton, ending the team’s 14-year long partnership with Chang.

Premier League Shirt Sponsors from the Betting Industry:

Bournemouth - M88

Burnley - Laba360

Crystal Palace - ManBetX

Everton - SportPesa

Fulham - Dafabet

Huddersfield Town - OPE Sports

Newcastle United - Fun88

West Ham United - Betway

Wolverhampton Wanderers - W88

That said, while the number of gambling-related shirt sponsors in the Premier League and Championship Clubs climbed over the years, it was the 2016/17 season when the sponsorships really skyrocketed. That year, ten teams wore the name of a bookie on their kit, 50% of sides in the league, making it the highest representation for any one industry sector in a single season.

In fact, during the 2016/17 season, one online sportsbooks in particular, the always popular destination for football punters - 888sport - became the first main sponsor to simultaneously sponsor four EFL Championship teams at the same time: Birmingham City, Brentford, Nottingham Forest, and Preston North End.

Even now, for the 2018/19 season, the main sponsors of these EFL teams are sports betting sites: 888sport (Birmingham), LeoVegas (Brentford), BetBright (Nottingham Forest), and 32Red (Preston North End).

2018/19 Season: The Gambling industry has taken over half the market

In 2005, a law changed that relaxed restrictions on TV gambling adverts. This paved the way for the betting industry to scoop up Premier League and Championship shirt sponsorships. In the following 2006/07 season, the number of teams sponsored by a gambling firm climbed from one to five. By 2009/10 it jumped up to 12, with five main sponsors in the Championship and seven in the Premier League.

Interestingly, it dipped down to nine in 2015/16, but then doubled in 2016/17 to a record-breaking 18 clubs in the top two flights having a betting brand as their main sponsor. Last season, it grew to 22 clubs and now, for the 2018/19 season, there’s a total of 26 clubs (nine of 20 in the Premiere League and 17 of 24 in the Championship) with sports betting sponsors. That’s a whopping 59% of the clubs in England’s top two divisions sporting gambling brands on their shirts.

For the first time in history, more than half of the main shirt sponsors of Premier League and Championship clubs are gambling firms. The sudden rise has been largely attributed to Championship clubs, with betting firms accounting for about 71% of club sponsorships this season. What’s more, the combined total of the current nine Premier League clubs with shirt sponsorships is worth £47.3 million.

Although sports betting companies may seem like the ideal sponsors for professional sports, there is a growing concern that the relationship between the two is leading to normalising gambling among young people.

Gambling sponsorships in UK football: A public concern?

According to a recent article published in the journal Soccer & Society, the current levels of gambling sponsorships in UK football, as well as the global visibility it provides to gambling brands, is a public health concern – which can explain why the FA choose to cut ties with betting sponsors in 2017.

The team of researchers behind the article point out that while studies regarding the effects between sports and gambling in the UK are still in development, the ever-present role of gambling in English football has received critical attention. Although current UK law prohibits TV gambling adverts before 9 pm, football coverage is exempt from this rule, regardless of the time of day a match may be broadcast.

Furthermore, researchers at Goldsmiths, University of London, who conducted a study of three episodes of the BBC’s flagship football highlights programme Match of the Day, found that gambling branding or logos appeared on screen between 71% and 89% of the show’s running time.