Premier League shirt ban cuts gambling exposure by just 10.5%, study finds
A University of Bristol study has found that gambling advertising remained highly visible across the opening weekend of the 2026/27 Premier League season, despite this season’s voluntary ban on front‑of‑shirt betting sponsorship.
The University of Bristol’s latest study recorded 15,571 gambling messages across the opening weekend of the UK season.
While this was a 10.5% drop, this season is also the first in which Premier League clubs have been prohibited from having a front-of-shirt gambling sponsor after the voluntary ban came into effect for the new campaign.
Dr Raffaello Rossi, the project lead at the University of Bristol, said: “This cannot be presented as a success for self-regulation.”
Researchers analysed all Premier League matches broadcast live in the UK during the opening weekend (21-24 August), as well as 15 hours of Sky Sports News television coverage and 15 hours of TalkSport radio broadcasts.
They also examined organic and paid social media advertising from the 10 major gambling brands with the largest social media followings.
The findings of the report are set to be presented to the UK Parliament on Wednesday.
The screen is still crowded
The study found that, despite the voluntary front-of-shirt betting sponsorship ban coming in from the start of this Premier League season, exposure has shifted elsewhere in the matchday ecosystem.
According to the findings, at least one gambling message was visible for five hours and 16 minutes during live coverage, meaning almost one-fifth of broadcast time featured betting marketing.
Pitchside boards accounted for the bulk of the exposure at 72% of all messages at live matches, while gambling branding on sleeves and training wear was over threefold the levels of previous years.
Rossi explained that Premier League broadcasts contained more gambling messages per game than comparable coverage in Germany, Canada and the United States.
Digital marketing also prevalent
The report also points to a wider digital problem. Researchers said more than 1,000 paid adverts on Facebook and Instagram had an estimated UK reach of 153.2 million accounts, with 18-to-24-year-olds accounting for more than 10% of the total.
The study said 93% of the gambling content marketing it identified was not clearly marked as advertising.
Former England goalkeeper Peter Shilton, a longstanding patron of the research project, said the findings were “deeply concerning” given the harm gambling can cause to individuals and families.
“When gambling is so visible throughout the game, it risks making betting feel like a normal part of being a football fan or player,” he said.
“We are not at all anti-gambling but believe more needs to be done to reduce the amount of gambling advertising especially around the young.”
Sir Iain Duncan Smith, co-chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Gambling Reform, added: “These findings are further evidence that the voluntary approach to gambling advertising in football is failing.”