22 September: English Premier League (EPL) clubs have increased their shirt sponsorship income by 8% this season despite the introduction of the gambling ban, with new analysis from Ampere showing that the league’s clubs are generating £444m from the asset.
This is up from £410m in 2025/26, with clubs replacing much of the betting money that disappeared from shirts with financial, technology and tourism brands.
Eight clubs have replaced gambling shirt deals worth a combined £67m with new sponsorships valued at £75m, according to Ampere Analysis. Instead of leaving an expected hole in the club’s income.
However, the growth has not been evenly distributed.
The Premier League’s traditional ‘Big Six’ have added a total of £46m to shirt revenue. Ampere points to Arsenal’s improved Emirates renewal and Chelsea’s new full-season deal with Circle, which replaces last season’s shorter IFS deal, as two of the drivers.
With Liverpool also in line for a new big-money sponsor from next season, after agreeing Turkish Airlines to replace long-term partners Standard Chartered in a record-money deal, the line-up will change positively once again.
Outside this group of elite clubs, the picture is flatter. The relegation of West Ham and Wolves and their replacement by promoted clubs contributed to a reduction of £16m.
The remaining clubs added just £4m between them, but combined, that leaves the league £34m better off than last season.
In-game money hasn’t completely disappeared either. It has simply moved to another place on the shirt.
Total betting sponsorship spend across all Premier League assets has fallen from £155m to £63m, a drop of £92m or almost 60%. The total number of bets is also down by 21%.
But six betting companies have signed new training or sleeve agreements. Betting brands now account for 57% of all training kit sponsorship spend, up 34% on last season, while their share of sleeve spend has risen from just 3% to 20%.
Unsurprisingly, betting remains the busiest sponsorship category in terms of new deals, accounting for 13% of deals signed to date. Commerce, payments, AI and cybersecurity companies each account for 5%.
Adam Lewis, senior analyst at Ampere Analysis, said: “With AI, payment and commerce companies now appearing at the helm of Premier League club teams, the market has proved resilient despite the gambling ban. Bookmakers are finding alternative routes for exposure through sleeves and training kits, but their overall investment has fallen sharply between the rest of the Meap and the rest of the league. continues to expand, with the biggest clubs capturing the lion’s share of sponsorship revenue growth.”
Contact the writer of this story, Harry Ewing, at (email protected)
