The 2026 Sponsorship Ban: Will Online Casinos Be Affected?
The 2026 sponsorship ban on betting companies in sports will affect today’s biggest sports betting companies, but will online casinos be affected?
The English Premier League will be the first UK sports league to withdraw sponsorship by gambling operators that usually appear on the front of matchday shirts. The ban will come into effect at the end of the 2025/26 season, meaning that you will no longer see sports betting sponsors on the shirts from the 2026/27 campaign going forward. The question being asked here is, will online casinos be affected by the 2026 sponsorship ban? Find out more right here.
Why is there a gambling sponsorship ban coming into effect in the Premier League for the 2026/27 season?
The gambling sponsorship ban on Premier League football shirts is coming into effect in 2026 to reduce gambling advertising. The Premier League will also work with other sports to develop a new way to promote responsible gambling sponsorship instead.
For most people, gambling at licensed sports betting sites and online casinos is seen as a fun way to pass the time and spend some affordable spare change in the hope of winning but not expecting to win. For others, gambling can be harmful and can lead to some people developing gambling problems.
Will online casinos be affected by the sponsorship ban?
Yes. For example, many of the gambling companies that currently sponsor the front of English Premier League football shirts don’t just offer sports betting services. They also have online casino games. These websites are otherwise known as sports betting casinos. So, what does this mean?
It means online casinos will be affected. You won’t be able to see online casinos, sports betting products (or any other licensed gambling products) plastered on the front of football shirts anymore. No gambling companies will be able to advertise on the front of shirts.
However, it’s not a complete ban. For example, online casinos and sports betting companies CAN still sponsor shirt sleeves and the advertising hoardings you see around the pitch side.
New players, for example, will still be able to grab some amazing welcome bonuses and place sports bets or play casino games at these sites. You just won’t see their sponsors on shirts anymore. The other aim of the ban is to stop normalising gambling in front of children.
How many Premier League teams have betting company shirt sponsors?
In the current 2022/23 season, a total of eight Premier League teams are sponsored by betting companies. These include the following:
- Bournemouth – sponsored by Dafabet
- Brentford – sponsored by Hollywoodbets
- Everton – sponsored by Stake
- Fulham – sponsored by W88
- Leeds – sponsored by SBOTOP.net
- Newcastle – sponsored by Fun88
- Southampton – sponsored by Sportsbet.io
- West Ham – sponsored by Betway
The estimated value of these sponsorship deals is worth somewhere in the region of £60 million per year. Any current deals that are already active can also remain in place until the ban comes into effect.
Premier League clubs can still secure new sponsorship deals for the front of their shirts with gambling companies until the ban comes into effect. A similar ban also recently came into effect in Spain’s La Liga.
Is there still time to bet on the Premier League?
Yes. There is still time to bet on the Premier League, but time is fast running out. There are 20 teams in the league, and each team plays each other twice, meaning each team plays a total of 38 games.
Most teams have played 36 games. However, some teams (Newcastle United, Manchester United, and Chelsea) have only played 35 games, and Brighton have only played 34 games. In other words, for most teams, there are only two games left to place a wager on, so if you want to place a bet, you had better hurry while the markets are still open.
Which sites are currently taking Premier League bets?
If you go to the official AskGamblers.com website, you can find a complete list of fully licensed online sports betting casinos that are currently taking bets for the Premier League. Some of the most reliable and secure sites you can turn to with highly competitive Premier League betting odds are Leo Vegas Casino, Mr Green Casino, BetVictor Casino, Betfred Casino, Britain Bet, Betiton Casino, Dr Bet, Unibet, and Bet Duel, to name a few.
They are all fully licensed by the UK Gambling Commission or by one of several other mid to top-tier licensing authorities, and they are all controlled by reputable operators with excellent reputations in the iGaming industry. They are free to sign up to, but you must be at least 18 years old to register an account at any of these websites. The latest welcome bonus information for each site can also be found on the Ask Gamblers website.