Eight clubs replace front-of-shirt sponsors
The Premier League's voluntary ban on gambling branding on the front of shirts is now in force for the 2026/27 season, leaving eight clubs to replace the betting sponsors they carried last campaign. The change follows an April 2023 vote by the clubs and closes a two-decade run in which gambling brands became a fixture on Premier League kits. In each of the past two seasons, eleven of the twenty clubs wore bookmaker or casino logos on their shirts.
Chelsea and Sunderland have yet to confirm new front-of-shirt partners. Nottingham Forest took down the Bally's logo and agreed a deal with financial firm Marex. Chelsea puts the value of its front-of-shirt rights at about £50m and is not ready to sign long-term contracts at a lower price. Kieran Maguire, a professor of football finance at the University of Liverpool, points to the gap between what clubs expect and what sponsors will pay, and to a smaller pool of possible partners now that gambling money is off the front.
Tech and finance fill the gap
Crystal Palace signed with IT company Temporal and Fulham with ClickHouse. Together with Ipswich and Manchester United, four clubs now carry technology brands. Finance leads the field, with five of the seventeen clubs that have confirmed deals. Everton agreed terms with CMC Markets.
Maguire notes Premier League commercial revenue has grown almost 4,000%, from £58m to £2.4bn in the 2024/25 season. Manchester United's Snapdragon deal is worth about £60m a year, while newcomers can expect £5–6m a year. The ban covers the front of the shirt only: Betano moved from Aston Villa's front to the sleeve, and Stake.com did the same at Everton. Manchester United signed Betway for its training kit for up to £20m a year.
