Premier League Gambling Shirt Sponsors Hit All-Time High
Football has risen from being a popular sport to a multi-billion pound industry. A football club is now about so much more than what goes on on the pitch. Football clubs don’t just want to win on matchday; they also want to build up the club as a brand.
They might do this by running community outreach programs or by creating a wide range of merchandise. It’s no secret that the clubs that spend the most money are the most successful. When you have more money to spend on players and training facilities, it helps to give you an edge over your opponents.
One of the biggest ways that clubs are getting the funds they need to be successful is through sponsorship deals. If you watch any football game, you will probably see advertising boards for various sponsors all around the stadium. Of course, the most lucrative and important sponsorship deal is the shirt sponsor.
Shirt Logo Placements
A shirt sponsor’s company logo is placed front and centre on a team’s football shirt. This means that the brand will be very prominently displayed. In leagues such as the Premier League, the company logo will be broadcast on TVs around the world.
Not only that, but the logo will also be on any replica shirts, which are bought and worn by the fans. An estimated 4.7 billion people watch the Premier League; if you get your company logo on a team shirt, that is an insane amount of publicity for your company.
There are certain trends when it comes to Premier League shirt sponsors. The majority of them in this league are gambling companies such as LoveBet, which sponsors Burnley, or ManBetX, which sponsors Crystal Palace. Casino operators love to see their logo on team shirts because it encourages people to use their services to bet on the games they are watching.
An All-Time High
During the current season, shirt sponsorships from gambling operators are at an all-time high. According to CasinoGuide.co.uk, 10 teams in the Premier League were sponsored by gambling companies.
It is estimated that these casino and gambling sites will bring an additional £68.6 million into Premier League clubs. This kind of money could make all the difference between winning the league or managing to avoid relegation.
Despite this, the shirt sponsor that’s earning the most money for a club isn’t actually a gambling company. In fact, Manchester United earns the most money from their deal with Chevrolet, a car manufacturer. Recent estimates suggest that this sponsorship deal is worth a staggering £67 million, which is more than all of the gambling sponsorships combined.
Controversy
Experts on gambling issues have expressed concern with the sheer number of gambling sites that are sponsoring football clubs. They believe this could “normalise” gambling, particularly among younger viewers.
Many football viewers have started to see team support and betting on the outcome as an inseparable combination. This could make it a lot easier to develop a gambling habit, especially since there are so many betting sites and online casinos UK players can legally access.
Another issue is that many underage viewers regularly watch football every week. Statistics suggest that there are currently around 370,000 gamblers in the UK who are between the age of 11 and 16, and to make matters worse, 25,000 of that figure are believed to be problem gamblers.
It has been argued that gambling promotion attached to Premier League football has created the idea that betting and football are intertwined and that it’s impossible to enjoy one without the other.
Here to Stay
Despite the controversy, it seems like the gambling sponsorships are here to stay for the time being. With so much money brought into the Premier League thanks to the sponsors, there is very little appetite within the organisation to turn regulations against gambling providers.
However, this could change in the future if public opinion starts to turn and brings the Premier League into disrepute, or if the Gambling Commission and Advertising Standards Authority decide to take action.