Does it hinder or contribute? The impact of gambling on football in England and Scotland

Betting on sport, along with gambling, is an integral part of modern football in the UK. Television viewers and fans at the stadium see adverts for gambling, at every turn.

Some argue that the sponsorship of teams by iGaming-companies contribute to the development of football, while others, on the contrary, consider it inappropriate and demand to ban their advertising presence during games. Both have their arguments. Let us try to understand them on the example of the two largest subjects of the United Kingdom – England and Scotland.

Gambling and English football: general trends

Let’s start with the restrictions for players and the base, the regulatory framework. The start of legal gambling in the UK was given in 2005 after the adoption of a specialized law. Licensing and regulation is handled by the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC), established in 2007. 

Regulatory norms are quite harsh for both portal https://bonusy-bez-depozytu.pl/hitnspin-bonus-bez-depozytu/ and players – for example, a few years ago the local government banned the use of credit cards as a way to top up casino accounts. At the same time, the percentage of taxes on various types of licenses is regularly increasing. 

However, despite all the factors and difficulties, the English market remains the most prestigious among gambling companies. To get a license in the Foggy Albion – means to increase the level of confidence in their brand. 

As for the interaction between football teams and gambling operators, in most cases the relationship is deteriorating, although the zeros in the amounts of sponsorship contracts are growing.

Sponsorship contracts worth millions of dollars with APL clubs

In April last year, the APL announced that starting from the 2026/2027 season the logos of gambling companies will completely disappear from the clubs’ playing shirts on match days. However, advertising will not be completely banned: it will be seen on LED-boards around the pitch, in more stadiums and on training uniforms. 

Last season, eight APL clubs had title partnership agreements with gambling companies.

The total value of the contracts listed above is around £60m annually.

What opponents of gambling advertising say

The number of addicts, including young people and minors, is rising year-on-year – the vast majority of supporters of banning gambling adverts will say, and they would be right. 

The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) report of November 2023 states that the level of gambling problems may be eight times higher than previously thought. For example, the regulator believes that around 1.3 people are suffering from addiction or close to it. Although it was previously thought that only 0.3 per cent of the UK population had problems with ludo mania.

Opinions of supporters of gambling advertising

The main message of gambling advertising supporters is that such companies strongly support and promote sport, including in England, by signing advertising contracts for large sums of money. 

Some even professional football teams survive solely on the money received from betting companies and other gambling sites. If a complete ban on co-operation with brands from the industry is introduced, hundreds of amateur and dozens of professional teams risk simply disappearing from the football map.

Gambling and Scottish football: common trends

In Scotland, the trends are similar to what is happening in England: the number of gambling and sports betting enthusiasts is increasing. But, as local officials assure, there is no reason to panic. They say that the situation is controlled: there are dozens of organizations like GambleAward working in the country, which are engaged in education, prevention and treatment of gambling harms

At the same time, based on data from the Scottish Public Health Observatory, 0.4% of the adult population of the country – about 18 thousand people – are categorized as problem gamblers. Another 1.5 per cent (68 thousand people) are in the so-called risk group. However, men are significantly more likely to be problem players than women – 0.7 per cent versus 0.1 per cent respectively.

Immediately after the decision of APL clubs to ban title sponsorship by gambling companies from the season 2026/2027 Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) said that it does not plan to follow the example of territorial neighbors. 

The SPFL said in a statement that whether or not to cooperate with gambling companies is a personal matter for each individual club. In passing, such sponsorship contracts were described as “a significant source of revenue for many clubs”.

Scottish clubs and gambling sponsorship 

As you can see, for Scottish football, the support of gambling companies is arguably vital. No wonder, because the local Premiership is not attached to a tenth of the attention and love of fans from around the world, which is the APL. That’s just the way it is historically. 

Last season, 2022/2023, four companies from the gambling industry acted as title partners of local teams.

The table shows that the scale – and indeed the contract amounts for sure – are many times more modest than in the top division of the English Championship.

“Gambling and football – an alliance made in hell”

The Betting and Gaming Council has unveiled its report which states that the “vast majority” of the 22.5 million people in the UK who bet each month do so “safely and responsibly”. As many people, so many opinions.