Entain has officially urged the UK’s Independent Football Regulator (IFR) to ban Premier League clubs from accepting sponsorship from gambling operators that lack a UK license. The call was made in response to the IFR’s Second Licensing Consultation (CP 2/26), in which the IFR is seeking views on a new club licensing regime for the top five tiers of English men’s football.

The IFR’s draft already prohibits English football clubs from accepting income “connected to serious criminal conduct”. Entain is asking the regulator to confirm, in a single line of guidance, that the rule covers the unlicensed gambling operators currently sponsoring six Premier League clubs – operators that commit a criminal offence under section 33 of the Gambling Act 2005 every time they accept a bet from a British consumer.

Stella David, Chief Executive of Entain plc, said: “Premier League clubs are being sponsored by criminal gambling firms. The Independent Football Regulator can stop this tomorrow by simply acknowledging that unlicensed gambling companies targeting UK customers through English football are breaking the law – plain and simple. The regulator does not need any new powers, new legislation, or even a new rule to make this happen. In fact, it has already drafted one. We are asking the regulator to define and apply it before the next season begins. The IFR was created to fix English football’s governance failures. This is one of them.”

The scale of the unlicensed market is significant and growing. Research by Frontier Economics, commissioned by the Betting and Gaming Council, found that 1.5 million Britons stake £4.3 billion a year on unlicensed sites, which already account for 9% of the total UK gambling market, according to analysis by Yield Sec. One in five 18-to-24-year-olds has used illegal channels. An estimated 420,000 British schoolchildren are gambling on the black market, routed there through social media, VPNs and crypto wallets. The Gambling Commission has found that 67% of GamStop users (people who have actively excluded themselves from licensed gambling) report being targeted by black market advertising. Unlicensed operators conduct no affordability checks, offer no self-exclusion tools and answer to no regulator.

Football is one of the black market’s most effective acquisition channels. Research by WARC, commissioned by the Betting and Gaming Council, projects that unlicensed gambling sponsorship will account for more than half of all UK sports sponsorship spend by October 2027, with unregulated firms set to triple their spend on 2019/2020 levels. Yield Sec analysis found that 92% of online betting content in certain social media categories directs users to unlicensed sites. A 2024 audit by Deal Me Out found that 84% of relevant content creators reviewed promoted unlicensed operators.

Entain’s submission to the IFR sets out four specific recommendations:

• Confirm in guidance that income from gambling operators conducting unlicensed activity in the UK constitutes funds “connected to serious criminal conduct” for the IFR’s draft Annex B, Part IV.

• Add a board attestation to the Annual Declaration requiring directors to verify the licence status of any gambling operator with which the club holds a significant commercial arrangement. Annual Declarations are signed by directors and carry legal consequences for false attestation. A vague governance principle cannot create the same accountability.

• Strengthen the Football Club Corporate Governance Code to require boards to treat reputational risk from commercial partnerships as a standing governance responsibility, and to demonstrate proportionate oversight of partners in sectors associated with consumer harm.

• Publish general guidance applicable to all licensed clubs, setting out the due diligence and notification obligations that apply to gambling commercial partners. Entain argues that a club-by-club Discretionary Licence Condition approach is inadequate for what is plainly a market-wide problem: systemic risks require systemic responses.

The IFR’s consultation comes ahead of a forthcoming consultation by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport on banning unlicensed gambling operators from sponsoring British sports teams.

Entain has also written to Richard Masters, Chief Executive of the Premier League, urging an immediate voluntary ban on sponsorship and advertising by unlicensed operators ahead of the 2026/27 season.

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BGaming has signed a distribution deal with Entain that will see the supplier’s casino games go live across Entain brands in Brazil, Spain, Italy, Greece, and Portugal.

Under the agreement, Entain players in those markets will get access to BGaming’s full portfolio, including titles grouped under its #Casual, #Entertainment, and #Classic categories. The companies said additional markets are expected to follow.

Olga Levshina, CCO at BGaming, said, “This deal marks a significant moment for BGaming as we look to establish our position in several major markets globally. Entain is one of the biggest and most respected names in the business, and by having our products widely available across its platforms, we can ensure our games get the attention they deserve.”

Obdulio Bacarese, Global Gaming Director at Entain, said, “We have secured our position as one of the biggest operators in iGaming by ensuring we always have the best possible games and content available for our players. BGaming is an exciting and innovative studio that will help us strengthen our offering across several key markets, and we look forward to seeing how our players react to their games.”

Entain operates in regulated markets and runs more than 25 brands, including bwin, Party Casino, Sportingbet, and Sports Interaction.

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Entain, the worldwide sports betting and gaming organization, has prolonged its enduring collaboration with Inspired Entertainment, ensuring ongoing access to Inspired’s top-tier Virtual Sports collection through its international brands.

An important aspect of the refreshed multi-year contract is the launch of Inspired’s enhanced Virtual Soccer with BetBuilder – debuting prior to this year’s football World Cup – offering Entain customers a new method to craft personalized, multi-selection virtual football wagers. More new Virtual Sports titles will be introduced later this year as part of an improved content schedule.

The refreshed agreement backs Entain’s intentions to continue enhancing its product range and providing additional options for its customers. Through a close collaboration with Inspired, Entain can roll out new Virtual Sports formats as they are released and guarantee that its global brands gain from a consistent flow of captivating, high-quality content.

Jamie Crossfield, Sportsbook Director at Entain, said: “Virtual Sports continues to be an important and growing category for our customers globally. Inspired has been a trusted partner for many years, consistently delivering high quality, high performing content across our brands. Extending this partnership enables us to build on that success while offering even more compelling entertainment through new products like the enhanced Virtual Soccer with BetBuilder.”

“We are delighted to extend our successful global partnership with Entain,” said Brooks Pierce, President and CEO of Inspired. “Our relationship has been built on collaboration, performance and innovation. The introduction of our upgraded Virtual Soccer with BetBuilder, an industry first, reflects our commitment to delivering differentiated, high impact products that drive engagement and long-term growth for our partners.”

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