You don’t need to be a football expert to know that the English Premier League is the world’s most popular football competition. Home to some of the best clubs in the world, the league attracts fans from every corner of the globe. Consequently, it’s no surprise that the Premier League also has some of the most expensive sponsorship deals in the world.
Speaking of sponsorship deals, Nostrabet.com’s research shows that 40% of them in the EPL come from the gambling sector. Many of the world’s leading iGaming operators target this competition because they know that it has fans worldwide. “Although the percentage may seem surprising to some, those following the betting scene know why this is the case. The UK has one of the largest sports betting markets in the world, so you can find all top-tier bookies”, said Kristiyan, the football betting expert at NB.
A lot of people may want to know more about the different sponsorship deals and the gambling sector’s role, so let’s dive in.
The Leading Premier League Sponsors
As mentioned, the gambling sector is at the forefront of sponsorship deals because 40% of the teams have a sponsor from this industry. We will go into more detail about this sector in a bit, but there’s no argument that the percentage is high. Due to the growing concerns about how gambling affects football fans, the EPL decided to try to reduce its dependency on iGaming sites by 2026. We are yet to see if this will be the case.
Aside from gambling, the statistics reveal that financial services are the second-biggest EPL sponsor. Close to 25% of the teams in the Premier League have a sponsor in this sector. Again, this is probably not surprising because many of the leading crypto exchanges and/or other financial institutions have been targeting this league for many years.
Third on the list is the airline & travel industry. Ever since the events in 2020, the travel industry has been on the rise, so this is another result that is not surprising. 10% of the EPL teams have a sponsor from this business area.
Moving on to the automotive industry, 5% of the teams in the Premier League are from different brands in this area of business. Car brands sponsoring football clubs is nothing new, and we can find this all over the world, not only in the EPL.
The energy sector is also relatively big in the English Premier League. Based on the stats, 5% of the teams have a sponsor for this sector. Interestingly, 5% of the teams are also sponsored by brands in the event and hospitality, health and fitness, and the software and technology niches.
Gambling Sponsorship’s Role in the Premier League
Since close to half of the EPL clubs are associated with a betting company one way or another, it’s no surprise that this industry is incredibly important to them. If we dive deep into the first 3 football echelons in the UK, we’ll see that the EPL has a total of 8 gambling sponsors. Championship also has solid representatives with 5 betting brands, and League One has only 1.
Based on different estimates from football experts, all EPL gambling sponsorship deals are worth close to £60M in annual revenue. This is a very high number that definitely helps clubs, but the bad news is that they will need to find a replacement soon.
As mentioned, the EPL is running an ongoing campaign to try to reduce the number of gambling sponsorships in the competition. This will undoubtedly affect all clubs that have current sponsorship deals.
Based on our information, the Premier League’s decision does not affect the other football echelons in England. Therefore, we would not be surprised if some of the big gambling companies decide to shift their focus to the Championship. As mentioned, there are 5 clubs with gambling sponsorships there right now, but this number may change very soon.
Which are the Leading Gambling Sponsors in the English Premier League?
Everyone with some experience in the UK’s gambling scene knows that this market is huge. In fact, it is home to almost all top-tier sports betting and gambling companies, many of whom have been operating for years. Although not all of them are associated with EPL sponsorship deals, you can find many big brands.
Starting with bet365, this is one of the first bookies that people think of when talking about online betting. The company has a rich history in the UK, so it’s unsurprising that it is at the forefront of gambling sponsorships. In the current 2024/25 EPL season, bet356 sponsors Stoke City.
Another big company that definitely deserves attention here is Betway. The latter has also existed for ages and is available worldwide, including the UK. The statistics reveal that Betway sponsors West Ham.
Hollywoodbets is the next name on the list, and the interesting thing is that the brand is from South Africa. Nevertheless, it also operates in the UK market and sponsors Brentford.
The next football club in the EPL with a gambling sponsor is Everton. An interesting fact about it is that it is sponsored by Stake, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency iGaming operators. Although Stake was available in the UK, the company had to exit the UK market after a series of controversies.
Unibet is also present in the english football because the iGaming operator sponsors Middlesbrough. This is another brand that is available in the UK and accepts clients from the jurisdiction, however, you can also find many other gambling sites that do not. Some companies are unavailable in the local market and only target people in different parts of the world.Do Football Fans Have Any Advantages When Using One of the EPL’s Sponsors?
Many people are probably asking themselves whether using some of the sites mentioned above provides any advantages. The answer is yes, but it really depends on the operator these people plan on using.
From our experience, some of the top-tier iGaming operators in the UK will always have a few ongoing bonuses related to the EPL. Most of these deals are temporary and will change very often, but others are permanent, and people can use them all the time.
An interesting fact is that some bookies that sponsor a given club may provide special perks only for it. This was the case with Stake before because they used to have exclusive propositions that were only available if you’d wagered on Everton (the club that they sponsored).
Alongside the numerous temporary perks, many big bookmakers will provide multiple other deals to EPL fans. The sites will almost always have some kind of deposit bonuses and ACCA boosts. In some instances, it is also possible to find better odds, cashbacks, and a load of different free bets.
Keep in mind that the bookmakers will try to capture your attention by offering a very impressive welcome bonus. There have been some regulations in this department, but most betting sites in the UK continue to provide impressive welcome propositions. Before choosing a site solely based on these bonuses, remember to check everything they have and how it all works.
What’s Next?
Considering that the UK has one of the largest iGaming markets in the world, it’s not surprising that gambling companies play a crucial role in the EPL and other football leagues. That said, the growing popularity of online gambling also comes with its problems. The stats reveal that more and more people are developing different kinds of betting/gambling problems that often lead to even more issues down the road.
The English Premier League had to change its sponsorship rules to control the popularity. Following a discussion in 2023, clubs agreed not to include any gambling sponsors on the front of their matchday shirts. According to the official news, this decision happened after an extensive consultation that involved many authorities.
The entire idea behind this change is to make sure that people are not constantly exposed to gambling advertisements. The decision came in 2023, but clubs agreed to implement it at the start of the 2026/27 season, which means we will see it in 2 years.
It is no surprise that betting operators were unhappy with the decision. Many of them pay very large amounts of money to find their name on these t-shirts. Moreover, these sponsorship deals allow them to bring in many new clients, especially those who are not that familiar with online betting.
There is no arguing that this ban will affect online gambling sites, but we also believe that some football clubs will receive a big hit. For better or worse, many of them depend on these kinds of sponsors, so it will be interesting to see if they can diversify their income sources.
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