UK Gambling Commission warns Premier League clubs over illegal sponsors

The UK Gambling Commission has warned Everton, Nottingham Forest, and Leicester City about promoting illegal gambling websites through their sponsorship deals.

The warning came as the regulator announced that Stake.uk.com would no longer be a licensed operator following an investigation. The company behind the platform, TGP Europe Ltd, is set to shut down the site by next month. 

Everton's front-of-shirt sponsor, Stake.com, and online gaming platforms Kaiyun and BC Game, which sponsor Nottingham Forest and Leicester City, respectively, are at the center of the controversy.

The commission will send formal warnings to the clubs, cautioning that promoting unlicensed gambling sites accessible to UK consumers could result in fines or imprisonment.

"Clubs will be expected to carry out sufficient due diligence to assure the Commission that consumers cannot transact with the sites from Great Britain by any means," it said in a statement.

BC Game has already disabled new registrations in the UK as it prepares to shut down its operations in the country, according to a notice on its website.

In 2023, Premier League clubs collectively agreed to phase out gambling sponsorships on the front of their kits by the 2026-27 season.

The probe into Stake.uk.com was launched after a widely circulated video on social media showed the Stake-branded logo alongside an adult actress near Nottingham Trent University.

TGP Europe Ltd has agreed to stop taking new sign-ups and remove links to Stake’s main website. It will cease operations in Great Britain by March 11.