Key facts
- Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur are among 10 Premier League clubs with sponsorship or advertising deals with unlicensed gambling companies.
- The UK government is consulting on proposals to ban gambling sponsorships not licensed in the UK.
- Unlicensed operators earned £379m from UK users in the first half of 2025, holding 9% of the online gaming market.
- Licensed operators offer customer protections like affordability checks and spending limits, which unlicensed firms do not.
- The Premier League is lobbying against a ban, arguing that some Asian-facing companies' services are not available in the UK.
Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur are among 10 Premier League clubs facing criticism for striking sponsorship and advertising deals with unlicensed gambling firms. The UK government is developing plans to ban such partnerships, which could cost clubs millions of pounds and remove crucial customer protections.
An eight-week consultation on proposals to ban sponsorship from gambling companies not licensed in the UK closes on Wednesday. Licensed operators such as Ladbrokes and William Hill are reportedly in opposition to the Premier League, which is understood to be lobbying against a ban. The league argues that the services offered by primarily Asia-facing betting companies and online casinos are not available in the UK, despite the ease with which users can access them via VPNs.
The number of top-flight clubs with commercial relationships with unlicensed operators has risen to 10 over the summer, influenced by the league's voluntary ban on front-of-shirt gambling sponsorships. Everton announced a sleeve sponsorship with Stake.com, and Fulham moved their SBOTOP sponsorship to training kit. Chelsea, Newcastle, Aston Villa, Ipswich and Coventry have deals with 8XBet, which is licensed in Curaçao.
Unregulated betting operators earned £379m from UK users in the first half of 2025, accounting for 9% of Britain’s online gaming marketplace, up from 2% in 2022. Campaigners highlight that unlicensed operators do not offer customer protections like affordability checks and spending limits, linking the unregulated market's growth to financial harm and addiction. Entain, owner of Ladbrokes, has written to the 10 clubs involved, warning of risks to sport integrity and society.