Despite a looming ban, English Premier League clubs continue to partner with gambling brands. A.F.C. Bournemouth is the latest in a line that now stands at a count of eleven, signing a sponsorship deal with an Asian gambling company.
The new deal, which is thought to be the biggest ever for the club, is not unlike its previous sponsor. Last season’s shirt has Dafabet emblazoned on the front, and they reportedly paid just 50% of the new deal.
The trend is lucrative as it is unlikely, with Premier League clubs not able to feature gambling companies on their shirts starting with the 2026/27 season. Yet the list of clubs continues to grow: Aston Villa, Bournemouth, Brentford, Crystal Palace, Everton, Fulham, Leicester, Nottingham Forest, Southampton, West Ham, and Wolves all have something in common.
Wait, I’ve Not Heard of These Casinos?
Football fans in the UK have found the names of some of these companies a little perplexing, as they’re far from household names. For some of them, you can’t pop to the high street and place a bet on an accumulator, and the UK versions of the websites are not yet live.
So, why are these companies investing so heavily in an English club?
Well, the answer is split in two. First, it reflects the total value of the Premier League on a global level. Since the Premier League was created in 1992, succeeding the old First Division, English football has exploded.
It is now by far the most valuable football league, notching revenue figures that double the nearest competitor, Spain’s La Liga. It’s worth more than the National Basketball Association, and nearly the same as Major League Baseball.
The Bundesliga and Serie A (the latter being the glamour destination back in the 90s) are dwarfed by the Premier League, with yearly revenues not even reaching a third of England’s top division.
Second, it’s about global reach. 77% of Manchester United fans don’t live in the North West of England. The club is huge in Japan, China, and India. Bournemouth’s sponsor isn’t just looking to enter the UK gambling market, and reaching the local market is probably very low on the list.
But establishing its name with a wider global audience, that’s where the value is. Even if it’s just for two Premier League seasons.
New Sponsorship Approach
Sports sponsorship is big business, that’s a reality. Even FC Barcelona, long famous for not having any shirt sponsor, now has Spotify plastered on the front of their famous kit.
Gambling is going big, spreading sponsorship agreements all over Europe. Kevin Pietersen, the famous cricketer, and Serie A’s Bologna are now also sponsored by famous gambling names.
But companies also understand that being part of a football kit brings a level of responsibility, one that has perhaps been ignored a little bit in previous seasons. In conjunction with the Premier League and individual clubs, bookies are doing more to contribute to local areas, for example placing donations to charitable projects, promoting responsible gambling, and/or investing in cleaning the environment.
Where To After 2026/27?
This is part of a wider effort from the Premier League to establish ‘socially responsible’ codes of conduct, especially considering we are in uncharted waters. The days of sponsorships being led by UK-based companies are long gone.
Gambling can still be part of English football, despite the ban, but the industry has to conform to the four core ideas of the new codes: consumer protection, reinvestment in local projects, integrity, and social responsibility.
With the ban coming into force in under two seasons, there is no sign that the gambling industry is going to pull the plug on football. With a renewed elan and a willingness to cooperate with the Premier League, expect to see a reinvention in how clubs and bookies work together going forward. The early signs are certainly there.
Gambling Sponsorships Beyond Football
Sponsorship in sports goes beyond football, with the Premier League not unique to signing deals with some of the major players in iGaming. In the United States, it’s also very common with the major sports leagues.
For instance, the NBA has two official betting sponsors, and the NBA’s Summer League, which takes place in Las Vegas, was suitably sponsored by MGM Resorts.
In New Zealand, SkyCity, one of the leading casinos in the country, has entered partnerships with the Women’s Rugby World Cup, Auckland Storm, and Basketball NZ, amongst many others. The company, very much following the trend of partnering with charities, also supports Leukaemia and Blood Cancer New Zealand as well as Variety, a children’s charity. However, SkyCity’s Online Casino version is still on the waiting list for sports sponsorships due to laws and regulations that still limit these kinds of actions.
That’s the formula that leagues worldwide should always be pushing, creating a win-win situation for sponsors, the clubs, and the local community. With Bournemouth, for example, you could easily imagine a sponsorship deal that completely ignores the fans and community initiatives, simply because the Premier League operates on such a global scale.
That we are seeing codes of conduct and sponsors retaining a connection to the local area is good news. With fans feeling increasingly alienated by large multinationals and takeovers, it’s a move in the right direction.