What The UK Gambling Reform Means For The Sports Industry
There is no doubt that the sports industry’s relationship with gambling is at a pivotal crossroads. Earlier this month, the Sheridans | Sport team looked at some of the key issues which have led to 2023 becoming a seminal year in this ever-changing landscape.
Since then, the UK DCMS has published its long-awaited (and delayed) government White Paper on gambling review and reform (on 27 April).¹
"@DCMS on Twitter: The biggest shake-up of gambling rules in two decades for the smartphone era...
The White Paper, which is effectively a set of recommendations for reforming gambling legislation in light of the changing technological and digital landscape, covers every facet of betting and gambling in the UK, a sector that is worth £10 billion a year.
Many of the recommendations contained within the review will have direct or indirect impact on the sports industry. As expected, a sizeable chunk of the key issues have been kicked down the road, with further consultation to follow. However, based on what we know now: what exactly does the White Paper means for sport? What will likely happen next and when? What does the future really look like?
For those who don’t have time to read all 268 pages of the policy paper (which is titled “High Stakes: Gambling Reform for the Digital Age”), this piece breaks down some of the key takeaways for the sports and esports industry – from rights holders, agencies, brands, athlete representatives and data companies, to betting companies themselves.
What’s the context of this White Paper? The primary legislation in the UK is the Gambling Act 2005. In the 18 years since then, the rise of online gambling has transformed an entire industry to digital. A review of outdated gambling laws, therefore, is long overdue – the Government want (and need) gambling regulation to be “fit for the digital age”, and this is the primary reason for the review and potential overhaul of gambling laws in Great Britain.²
What does it actually cover? The report covers six core elements, with a set of key recommendations in respect of each: 1) Online protections; 2) marketing and advertising; 3) The powers and resources of the Gambling Commission; 4) Dispute resolution and consumer redress; 5) children and young adults; and 6) land-based gambling. This piece focuses on those issues of particular relevance to the sports industry.
What are the key takeaways?
Self-regulation and a new Code of Conduct: perhaps the standout inclusion is the proposal for a new cross-sport ‘Code of Conduct’ for gambling sponsorships, which would result in “meaningful improvements” in making partnerships more socially responsible. Interestingly esports is expressly referenced as being relevant too (the rise of betting markets in professional esports has been continuing for more than half a decade). Autonomy would be given to sporting (and presumably esports) bodies when it comes to drawing up (and crucially, enforcing compliance with) the code (whether as part of their sporting regulatory frameworks or otherwise). The White Paper includes some examples of voluntary codes of conduct adopted by operators across the gambling sector, and most interestingly sets out a number of ‘example principles’ which could be included in any such code:
A commitment to reinvestment of funds from sponsorship into development/grassroots activities. This could potentially allow athletes to refuse to wear gambling logos on kit on certain grounds. Many will remember when Papiss Cissé initially refused to wear a Newcastle shirt which featured the branding of payday lending brand, Wonga (gambling is not allowed in the Muslim faith).
Kits without sponsor logos to be ensured for athletes aged under 18 or adults who have religious or health reasons to object to wearing gambling sponsors; and replica kits without logos to be available in adult sizes.
In stadiums used for professional-level competition, gambling advertising should not be visible in or from dedicated family areas.
Operators to cover costs of education for sportspeople and staff on gambling-related harm from an independent provider.
A proportion of sponsorship inventory to be used for dedicated safer gambling messaging, compliant with the programme of work at section 2.4 of this chapter.
A commitment only to accept sponsorship from firms operating under licence from the Gambling Commission.
Front-of-shirt sponsorship deals with betting brands: earlier this month English Premier League clubs agreed to withdraw gambling sponsorship from the front of matchday shirts (effective from the end of 2025/26 season). This is significant given it will be the first UK sports league to move away from such prominent gambling advertising. However, as we discussed in BackPage Weekly #11, there is far from a consensus across the sports industry in forging a shared movement away from partnerships with gambling companies (indeed the PL’s withdrawal is limited to front of shirt - with sleeve, perimeter boarding and other in stadia sponsorship remaining). In terms of the White Paper, the UK Government has acknowledged and welcomed the Premier League clubs’ decision, however there is little to no further coverage of the specific issue. This will be one to monitor in future.
Sponsorship more generally: one of the Gambling Commission’s recommendations is for the Government to “seek to limit the amount, and frequency, of gambling ads/sport sponsorships promoted within elite sports media.” There have obviously been ongoing campaigns for an outright ban on gambling sponsorships, but the current position remains a long way away from any such blanket restriction. It seems the sports industry will be left to draw up its own principles around socially responsible gambling sponsorships in the guise of a new Code of Conduct.
Advertising: unsurprisingly both the White Paper and the Gambling Commission’s paper (published simultaneously alongside the White Paper) reference (and endorse) the change in advertising rules which came into force in October 2022 (as explained in BackPage Weekly #8, the ASA’s new rules were aimed at protecting young and vulnerable people from gambling advertising-related harm). However, there is no mention of any new restrictions on the number of gambling adverts or indeed what’s contained within them (and certainly no ban on gambling advertising generally). There is, however, mention of the need to divert ads away from vulnerable individuals.
Young people and online gambling: a key recommendation is that gambling operators need to do more to prevent under 18s being able to access gambling content (including for social media platforms to introduce clearer 'one-click' opt-outs from such advertising). There is also a reference to the greater levels of risk associated with 18-24 year olds when it comes to online gambling vulnerabilities. Operators will be expected to place greater emphasis on the age of a consumer when assessing these vulnerabilities.
Social responsibility: another specific area the Government considers needs strengthening in relation to sport is around socially responsibility messaging and protections, similar to the existing 'Drink Responsibly' messages used in relation to alcoholic beverages.
Requirements for gambling companies: the proposed reform includes the introduction of a mandatory statutory levy for betting operators, as well as companies being required to enhance ‘affordability’ and ‘financial vulnerability’ checks for certain gamblers, and target online VIP schemes and bonus offers. The British Horseracing Authority has welcomed the White Paper’s release, but asked for the levy to be reviewed. It is naturally expected that the financial harm to the horseracing industry could be significant. It has been reported that Flutter Entertainment (owner of betting brand giants Paddy Power and Betfair) believe the reforms will cost the company £100 million a year. Whether this would have a knock-on effect on betting brands’ appetite to invest in sponsorships with sports and athletes remains to be seen.
What are the timelines for implementation? A year-long consultation is expected to kick off in summer 2023, during which full details of some of the proposals, restrictions and technicalities are ironed out. In the meantime it’s a case of watch this space.
Concluding thoughts
The overriding purpose of the review was to “make sure that we have the balance right between consumer freedoms and choice on the one hand, and protection from harm on the other”. The overarching view is that the Government has taken a pretty neutral approach in trying to strike that balance. Obviously the devil will be in the detail once further consultation gets underway, but some believe the White Paper has therefore been somewhat underwhelming (and far less draconian that might have been the case). That said, there is no doubt the paper is an important step in reshaping the way which sport embraces and intersects with the gambling industry. There is little doubt that sports betting regulations are inevitably going to tighten, and it will ultimately be for sporting bodies, rights holders, betting companies and athletes/their representatives to carefully assess how any such restrictions will change (if at all) their decision-making on commercial opportunities.
[1] The Gambling Commission published its own advice paper too.
[2] Note Northern Ireland has its own separate regime.
