Study Explores Premier League And World Cup Gambling Advertising Chasm

Gambling advertising has been more dominant in Premier League football highlights footage than World Cup highlights, according to a study.

Research carried out by Nottingham University analysed and compared exposure of audiences to gambling branding in football highlights packages. And as far as the Premier League and World Cup were concerned, the differences were stark.

What did the findings show?

The report, which is believed to be the first of its kind, explored the impact of unhealthy commodity branding in football, using YouTube and Sky Sports highlights to formulate its findings. Within this, researchers used a small sample size, detailing the final 10 games of the 2025/26 Premier League season and 17 matches across the 2026 World Cup.

It was noted that gambling was the most unhealthy commodity category in Premier League highlights, with gambling brands visible for 32% of the total screen time. In contrast, gambling brands popped up in less than 2% of World Cup highlight footage. Moreover, the Nottingham University study illustrated that 81% of 3-17-year-olds watch YouTube, making gambling advertising inherently more risky.

Premier League front-of-shirt sponsorships sidelined

To a certain extent, the 32% figure might be distorted slightly given the change in Premier League gambling sponsorship rules. As of this season, Premier League clubs are prohibited from running betting companies on the front of shirts, and three sides (Aston Villa, Everton, and Bournemouth) have circumvented this by tying up sleeve deals with betting brands instead.

Rather, front-of-shirt placements didn’t seem to be much of an issue in the published study, accounting for 27.1% of gambling brand appearances in Premier League highlights. Meanwhile, the bulk of gambling exposure (72.9%), the study showed, happened elsewhere, and this was led heavily by pitchside boards or LED screens (50.4%).

Nathan Davies from the School of Medicine at the University of Nottingham, and lead author of the study, said:

“As the new season kicks off, the scale of potential exposure is substantial. Gambling adverts ran before most highlights.

“Gambling branding was on screen for a third of the highlights we analysed, and only around a quarter of those appearances were on the front of shirts, the one placement the Premier League’s voluntary agreement addresses. That leaves the great majority of gambling coverage in football untouched.”

Pressure mounting for bookies

More widely speaking, the pressure has been mounting on the bookies for months. In April, a steep tax rise was imposed on remote gaming duty (RGD) paid on online casino bets, climbing from 21% to 40% of gross gambling yield (GGY). Meanwhile, general betting duty paid on online sports bets will bump up from 15% to 25% of GGY in April 2027, with horseracing exempt from the new rate.

Aside from tax and the front-of-shirt sponsorship ban, UK-licensed betting companies are trying to combat the growing threat of illegal sites. A forecast made by the Betting and Gaming Council (BGC) showed that as much as £800 million could be staked on the Premier League with black market operators this season, and that figure could rise to £1 billion from the start of the 2027/28 campaign.

Lobbying campaign efforts to intensify

Earlier this summer, a House of Lords Select Committee heard evidence about the extent of the football gambling advertising problem in the UK. New trends have crept in, and the aforementioned study raises concerns. Lobbying efforts will naturally intensify, but whether the government heeds the warning signs remains to be seen.