Betting and Gaming Council introduces new sponsorship codes with sports bodies
The Betting and Gaming Council introduces new sponsorship codes with sports bodies to protect children and promote responsible gambling.
The Betting and Gaming Council (BGC) has introduced new codes of conduct for gambling-related agreements in collaboration with several sports organisations.
These guidelines aim to raise standards for sports sponsorship deals in the UK, focusing on child protection, social responsibility, reinvestment into sport and maintaining sporting integrity.
The BGC collaborated with national sports bodies, including the Premier League, English Football League, The FA, Women’s Super League, Rugby Football League and British Horseracing Authority.
The code is designed to address concerns about the impact of gambling sponsorship on sports, with each body developing a specific code for its sport.
The codes emphasise four principles:
Protection of children and young people: Gambling sponsorships must be designed to limit exposure to individuals under 18 and those at risk of gambling-related harm.
Social responsibility: Sponsorships should be promoted responsibly, with education and awareness messages included in marketing.
Reinvestment into sport: Funds from gambling sponsorships should be reinvested in infrastructure and programs benefiting fans and communities.
Maintaining sporting integrity: Sponsorships must not compromise the integrity of sporting competitions or harm participants’ welfare.
The English Football League, Premier League, The FA, Women’s Super League and British Horseracing Authority have agreed to implement the new code before the upcoming season.
Football clubs will limit gambling sponsorship exposure to children and vulnerable individuals and ensure that professional footballers are informed about available support services.
Clubs will also allocate part of their sponsorship to promote safer gambling messages.
In horseracing, the code will prevent betting promotions from targeting under-18s and ensure appropriate age-awareness measures are in place.
BGC members financially support many sports, with the English Football League and its clubs receiving £40m ($51m) from Sky Bet and the Scottish Professional Football League sponsored by William Hill. Additionally, horseracing receives £350m, while snooker, darts and rugby league receive over £12.5m in sponsorships.
This initiative follows BGC’s recent criticism of the Gambling Survey for Great Britain (GSGB) methodology, suggesting that it might overstate gambling participation and related harms.
The BGC argued the need for accurate data in assessing gambling behaviors and supporting research, prevention and treatment initiatives. Over the last four years, BGC members have donated £172.5m to address gambling-related harm.
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