Premier League clubs vote to ban front-of-shirt gambling sponsorship
The Premier League clubs have voted to outlaw having front-of-shirt (FoS) gambling sponsors by the end of the 2025/26 season.
A vote was taken by the clubs and the outcome has seen the league outlaw gambling sponsorship, despite it being one of the most lucrative options for Premier League teams outside the big six (Manchester United, Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur, Chelsea, Manchester City and Liverpool).
It is thought that the up-and-coming White Paper on Gambling wouldn’t expressly recommend a ban on gambling advertising in the Premier League because it was expected that the clubs would vote to outlaw the sponsorship independently.
It is estimated that the sponsorship from gambling companies is valued at £52m ($65m), and the loss of the revenue for smaller clubs in the Premier League could only increase the divide between the big six and the other 14 clubs.
Speaking on the matter, Christian Purslow, Aston Villa’s Chief Executive, said: “The commercial reality is that to teams outside the top six, such sponsors offer clubs twice as much financially as non-gambling companies.”
The decision arrived just after the White Paper investigation into Premier League ownership, which has recommended a raft of changes to be made to the current structure of the top tier of English Football.
The three-year period that the Premier League clubs have to allow current deals to end and agree on new ones is longer than some thought, which has been criticised in some corners.
Despite the ban applying to the FoS, gambling companies can still advertise on the shirt sleeves of teams.
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