Premier League shirt ban cuts gambling exposure by just 10.5%, Bristol study finds

A University of Bristol study says the Premier League’s voluntary front-of-shirt gambling sponsorship ban did not remove betting from the broadcast mix so much as move it around. The opening weekend of the 2026/27 season still generated 15,571 gambling messages, which matters for PSPs and operators because the matchday inventory is still there — just redistributed across TV, pitchside, and digital channels.

1. The University of Bristol recorded 15,571 gambling messages across the opening weekend of the UK season, a 10.5% drop year on year. But this was also the first season in which Premier League clubs were prohibited from having a front-of-shirt gambling sponsor after the voluntary ban came into effect.
2. Dr Raffaello Rossi, the project lead at the University of Bristol, said: “This cannot be presented as a success for self-regulation.” The report is due to be presented to the UK Parliament on Wednesday.
3. Researchers analysed all Premier League matches broadcast live in the UK during the opening weekend, 21-24 August, plus 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.
4. The study found 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 72% of all messages at live matches, while gambling branding on sleeves and training wear was over threefold the levels of previous years.
5. On digital channels, 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 also said 93% of the gambling content marketing it identified was not clearly marked as advertising.

Rossi said Premier League broadcasts contained more gambling messages per game than comparable coverage in Germany, Canada and the United States. For operators and payment partners, the practical takeaway is straightforward: a front-of-shirt ban does not, by itself, remove gambling exposure from the sponsorship stack or the media buy.