Premier League asks clubs to voluntarily remove shirt betting sponsors
July 7 - In a bid to wean its clubs off betting sponsors as primary club partners, the Premier League has asked clubs to voluntarily support the phasing out of shirt sponsorship over a three-year period.< /p>
The UK government has threatened to ban shirt sponsorships altogether as it considers how it will regulate how online bookmakers advertise themselves. The threat is that the sponsorship ban will be immediate and backed by legislation.
There are currently nine of the 20 Premier League clubs with online bookmakers as their main shirt sponsors. The bulk of sponsorships are aimed at Asian markets rather than UK punters and are typically worth between £5m and £7m a year for clubs.
In an attempt to stay on the good side of regulators, the Premier League, in a letter sent earlier this week, asks clubs to commit to a voluntary ban which would start with the new season but allow existing agreements to complete their terms as long as they expire no later than the 2024-25 campaign.
Clubs have a very short deadline to respond. For the proposal to pass league-wide, 14 clubs must be in favor.
One area that may not be covered by the ban is innings sponsorships, while advertising on perimeter boards and other club betting sponsorships and partnerships are likely to be only lightly regulated.< /p>
The key to avoiding potentially prohibitive legislation is a voluntary agreement with the Premier League.
While the prospect of legislation has been on the radar for some time, many clubs have nonetheless chosen to retain their betting partnerships, with Everton FC even announcing a new deal with Stake.com covering the 2020 season /21 - a move criticized by fans and anti-gambling lobbyists, particularly because Everton had previously taken the moral high ground by ending a previous shirt sponsorship with online betting company SportPesa.
The reality is that clubs would comfortably replace betting company shirt sponsorships, but the reality is that there are too few sponsors willing to pay the freight of the Premier League shirt front.
>The relationship between the Premier League and the betting industry is symbiotic on many levels. As a broadcast rights sales manager told Insideworldfootball, "the reality is that Premier League betting volume in Asian markets drives a large portion of the rights fee paid".
It remains to be seen what the impact on betting security will be of the removal of jersey betting sponsorships. If the result is to significantly reduce Premier League betting volumes, the ripple effect could be that it inadvertently affects broadcast revenue and viewer interest.
Contact the author of this story at moc.l1657105852labto1657105852ofdlr1657105852owedi1657105852sni@n1657105852osloh1657105852cin.l1657105852uap1657105852
July 7 - In a bid to wean its clubs off betting sponsors as primary club partners, the Premier League has asked clubs to voluntarily support the phasing out of shirt sponsorship over a three-year period.< /p>
The UK government has threatened to ban shirt sponsorships altogether as it considers how it will regulate how online bookmakers advertise themselves. The threat is that the sponsorship ban will be immediate and backed by legislation.
There are currently nine of the 20 Premier League clubs with online bookmakers as their main shirt sponsors. The bulk of sponsorships are aimed at Asian markets rather than UK punters and are typically worth between £5m and £7m a year for clubs.
In an attempt to stay on the good side of regulators, the Premier League, in a letter sent earlier this week, asks clubs to commit to a voluntary ban which would start with the new season but allow existing agreements to complete their terms as long as they expire no later than the 2024-25 campaign.
Clubs have a very short deadline to respond. For the proposal to pass league-wide, 14 clubs must be in favor.
One area that may not be covered by the ban is innings sponsorships, while advertising on perimeter boards and other club betting sponsorships and partnerships are likely to be only lightly regulated.< /p>
The key to avoiding potentially prohibitive legislation is a voluntary agreement with the Premier League.
While the prospect of legislation has been on the radar for some time, many clubs have nonetheless chosen to retain their betting partnerships, with Everton FC even announcing a new deal with Stake.com covering the 2020 season /21 - a move criticized by fans and anti-gambling lobbyists, particularly because Everton had previously taken the moral high ground by ending a previous shirt sponsorship with online betting company SportPesa.
The reality is that clubs would comfortably replace betting company shirt sponsorships, but the reality is that there are too few sponsors willing to pay the freight of the Premier League shirt front.
>The relationship between the Premier League and the betting industry is symbiotic on many levels. As a broadcast rights sales manager told Insideworldfootball, "the reality is that Premier League betting volume in Asian markets drives a large portion of the rights fee paid".
It remains to be seen what the impact on betting security will be of the removal of jersey betting sponsorships. If the result is to significantly reduce Premier League betting volumes, the ripple effect could be that it inadvertently affects broadcast revenue and viewer interest.
Contact the author of this story at moc.l1657105852labto1657105852ofdlr1657105852owedi1657105852sni@n1657105852osloh1657105852cin.l1657105852uap1657105852
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