The Premier League announced on Thursday that the front-of-shirt gambling sponsorship will be phased out by the end of the 2025-26 season, following an agreement by the league's teams.



Currently, eight of the top 20 clubs have gambling firms as shirt sponsors. The three-year transition period allows existing contracts to be completed without penalty for early termination by clubs.



The Premier League announced that its clubs have agreed to remove gambling sponsorship from the front of their matchday shirts in order to reduce gambling advertising. This decision was made voluntarily, making the Premier League the first sports league in the UK to do so.

The decision follows extensive consultation with the league, its clubs, and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport as part of the UK government's ongoing review of gambling legislation.



Italy and Spain have already banned gambling sponsors on the front of football shirts. In contrast, the UK government's review of gambling legislation is reportedly not planning to implement a complete ban on front-of-shirt sponsorship due to the financial hardship it would cause to clubs lower down the pyramid.

Despite this, the Premier League was under pressure to take voluntary action, as it has the highest TV rights revenue of any football league globally.


In addition to the collective agreement to withdraw gambling sponsorship from the front of matchday shirts, the Premier League is also collaborating with other sports to create a new code for responsible gambling sponsorship. The Premier League stated that the collective agreement will start at the end of the 2025/26 season to aid clubs with their transition away from gambling sponsorship on the front of their shirts.