In conjunction with the country’s Ministry of Sports, the ANJ has launched a dedicated body to introduce new guidelines regarding sponsorship contracts ahead of this year’s FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

In February, the ANJ “recalled” that partnership and sponsorship contracts came under the category of commercial communications, and that consequently, such contracts are subject to the rules relating to commercial communications.

It therefore wished that the supervision of these contracts be handled by a “dedicated working group, placed under the aegis of the ANJ, in conjunction with the Ministry of Sports.”

Given the growth of sports betting, alongside upcoming events such as the aforementioned FIFA World Cup, 2023 Rugby World Cup in France and the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, the ANJ said “the stakes of these partnership contracts are particularly important.”

The working group will have two primary functions; to define the rules applicable to partnership contracts and to highlight best practices in the implementation of such partnerships.

“Bilateral exchanges” will be organised during the summer by the ANJ, followed by roundtables at the beginning of France’s school year, which starts in September.

These will focus on the “prevention of excessive gambling and the protection of minors in partnership contracts, the sponsorship of gambling operators in professional and high-level sport, as well as the place of sponsorship in traditional media and social media.”

At the end of these roundtables, the working group will reach initial conclusions before the World Cup, said the ANJ.

It added: “All dimensions of sponsorship will be taken into account, from flocked jerseys to the naming of competitions, including sponsorship of programmes on radio, television or even on streaming sites.”