As the new Premier League season gets underway this weekend, once again more than half of the clubs involved will have a gambling firm as their main shirt sponsor.
At the time of writing, Chelsea were yet to unveil their sponsorship deal for the 2025/26 campaign. But of the other 19 Premier League clubs, eleven will be promoting betting to their fans of all ages.
And a handful of EPL teams that were warned of the perils of promoting unlicensed gambling firms will continue to showcase the branding of operators without a UK licence – despite the threat of legal sanctions.
The Final Countdown
| Team | 2025/26 Shirt Sponsor |
|---|---|
| Aston Villa | Betano |
| Bournemouth | bj88 |
| Brentford | Hollywoodbets |
| Burnley | 96.com |
| Crystal Palace | NET88 |
| Everton | Stake.com |
| Fulham | SBOTOP |
| Nottingham Forest | Bally’s |
| Sunderland | W88 |
| West Ham United | BoyleSports |
| Wolverhampton Wanderers | DEBET |
This will be the final season that Premier League clubs are allowed to pen sponsorship agreements with gambling operators before a voluntary ban kicks in next year.
And more than half of the division’s teams are looking to make hay while the sun shines.
Aston Villa will move into the second year of their deal with Betano, while Brentford will continue their long-standing partnership with Hollywoodbets.
A thing of beauty 👌 pic.twitter.com/7AcB9n3KgI
— Brentford FC (@BrentfordFC) July 25, 2025
Crystal Palace will display the NET88 branding on the front of their shirt, while Everton will continue to partner with Stake.com – despite the firm surrendering their UK operating licence earlier this year following a series of controversies.
Nottingham Forest will trouser a reported £8 million from a one-season sponsorship deal with American gambling firm Bally’s, while West Ham have split with long-time partners Betway… and replaced them with Irish betting firm BoyleSports.
2025/26 ready. 🏆
Supporters can now apply the Europa League logo to our home and away kit sleeves both in-store and online. 👕
— Nottingham Forest (@NFFC) August 12, 2025
Meanwhile, mystery surrounds the status of sponsorship deals penned by five more Premier League clubs.
Bournemouth (bj88), Burnley (96.ocm), Fulham (SBOTOP) and Wolves (Debet) were specifically warned in May 2025 that their agreements all potentially break the law. Those four overseas firms were part of a white label agreement with TGP Europe, who have since been forced to surrender their UK licence after failing to pay a £3.3 million fine to the Gambling Commission.
So it means that the four clubs in question are effectively promoting unlicensed gambling in the UK – with club officials liable for prosecution. They will be free from litigation if they can prove that their sponsors’ sites cannot be accessed from these shores due to geo-blocking.
Nottingham Forest ditched Kaiyun Sports as a sponsor for the same reason, although the Asian firm will resurface in 2025/26 as a sleeve sponsor of Crystal Palace.
Sunderland, meanwhile, will showcase not one but two betting brands on their playing shirt.
The LiveScore Bet logo will be etched onto their sleeves, while W88 will be the main front-of-shirt sponsor. At the time of writing, W88 does not have a UK operating licence either – exposing the Black Cats to possible legal action.
One More Time
The voluntary ban on gambling sponsorships was agreed by all Premier League clubs back in 2023. It will, however, only pertain to front-of-shirt marketing… betting firms can still get their logos in place on shirt sleeves, training kits and in key locations inside stadia.
But the loss of income from the ban will undoubtedly hurt, with gambling firms seemingly willing and able to pay more for sponsorship deals than any other sector – according to Insider Sport, Betano ‘overpaid’ on their agreement with Aston Villa by some £13.6 million in order to secure the prime location.
It’s thought that betting firms collectively pay more than £140 million per season to Premier League clubs; a figure that is likely to drop significantly as of the 2026/27 season.
And, as detailed by Football Media CEO Dean Akinjobi, a similar ban in the EFL would be harmful to clubs – although, at the time of writing, sides in the Championship, League One and League Two are yet to agree to a voluntary veto.
“The impact will be even more pronounced when the ban extends to clubs across the English Football League (EFL),” Akinjobi said.
“Lower league teams are far more reliant on betting sponsorships due to significantly lower broadcast revenues and limited global exposure.
“For many of these clubs, gambling partnerships provide a commercial lifeline.”
In the Premier League’s inaugural season back in 1992/93, eight of the 22 teams were sponsored by technology firms, with two penning agreements with fashion and construction companies.
The rest were spread across a diverse array of industries such as pharmaceuticals, chemicals, automotive and media, while four clubs were sponsored by alcoholic beverages – although not banned outright, it’s unlikely that any EPL team will turn back the clock to booze brands over concerns about ‘responsible’ messaging.
But will any of these other sectors return to the fold and pick up the slack lost by the absence of gambling firms?