The English Premier League is often described as the most famous league in football on a global level. As such, the interest in the EPL matches is tremendous. People don’t just follow the league, but they also place wagers on the outcome.
Due to the big interest in betting on EPL with sportsbooks and independent casino sites that offer this form of wagering, big names in the gambling industry are throwing piles of money to sponsor the championships, as well as organize brand awareness to attract more people from the target audience.
This comes as no surprise, especially now that gambling and sports betting are available online. Sponsorship deals for gambling firms have been one of the most profitable ways to market their brand – and a sure way to attract the target audience to their sites.
These days, fans of the EPL can easily place their wagers at a trending casino with a no deposit bonus UK, and combine this with playing casino games of all sorts when the championship ends.
Teams in the EPL find the biggest source of income in sponsors, and those in the gambling industry have made lucrative deals over the years. Let’s take a look at some of the known sponsorships of EPL teams in recent times.
Biggest Gambling Brand Sponsorships of EPL Teams
The Premier League is the English division with the biggest sponsorships under its sleeve, but it’s not the only division with ties to gaming companies. Two-thirds of the clubs have these kinds of sponsorships. The EFL Championship, for example, is almost entirely sponsored by SkyBet, totaling around £40 million.
In the 2022/23 season, only one team of the EPL entered without any betting brand partnership – Norwich. In comparison, both Liverpool and Chelsea partnered with 1xBet and Parimatch respectively. To be more, 9 of the 20 clubs in the Premier League displayed a betting brand on the players’ shirts. These are Brentford, Crystal Palace, Burnley, Leeds, Southampton, Newcastle, Watford, Wolves, and West Ham.
Aston Villa also displays a betting company on the shirts, but on the sleeves instead of the front.
This doesn’t mean that other teams don’t have sponsorships from gambling companies. None of the top 6 feature a logo on their kits, but Arsenal, Tottenham, Manchester City, and Manchester United have all partnered with some gambling companies.
Out of all teams, Leicester City is the one with the most partnerships with gambling companies. They have 5 sponsorships from Parimatch, Bet365, W88, Betway, and Yabo Sports.
Let’s take a look at some of the sponsorship deals of 2022.
| Everton | Stake.com |
| Bournemouth | Dafabet |
| Fulham | W88 |
| Newcastle United | FUN88 |
| Leeds United | SBOTOP |
| Southampton | Sportsbet.io |
| West Ham United | Betway |
| Arsenal | Sportsbet.io |
| Aston Villa | OUBAO Bet |
| Brighton | Betway |
| Chelsea | Parimatch |
| Crystal palace | W88 |
| Liverpool | 1xBet |
EPL Sponsorships throughout the Years
The number of sponsorships is growing every year. Just a few years back, there were only a few betting companies that sponsored teams. Back in the 2002/03 season, it was rare for a betting company to sponsor the big leagues. That year, Fulham brandished Betfair and the results were tremendous. Soon after, many betting companies followed suit, working to market themselves on the big stage.
Fast forward to the 2016/17 season, there were 10 teams with betting logos on the shirts of the players. The highest number was 11 in the 2016 and 2017 seasons. In 2019/20, there was a record-breaking number of £349.1 million made from sponsorship deals for shirts, out of which £68.6 million were sourced from betting companies.
Here are some interesting facts regarding gambling sponsorships in the EPL:
- Logos aren’t just displayed on the shirts of players. Since 2018, teams are granted the opportunity to sell a 100cm2 area on the sleeves, the left sleeves to be more precise, to commercial partners. These sponsorships brought an extra 3 million in revenue per club. As a result, you can see logos like 12Bet, LT, and Lovebet on the sleeves of West Brom, Aston Villa, and Burnley.
- Sponsorships aren’t only for match-day kits like shirts and equipment. Many betting companies sponsor teams with training kits. For example, you can see Manchester City’s advertisements for betting companies during warmups and training sessions.
- Sponsorships also include side perimeter advertising, as well as ads in the stadiums. The next time you watch an EPL match, check the billboards during the matches and you’ll find plenty of gambling brands on them. Even entire stadiums have the names of sponsors. One example of this is the Bet365 stadium in Stoke City.
Despite the progress that we’ve seen over the years, there’s a big risk for betting companies. In the 2020/21 season, the UK government reviewed the 2005 Gambling Act and the committee suggested that Premier League clubs shouldn’t advertise betting companies on the shirts as of 2023. This is still uncertain, so we are yet to see what will happen.