There is a grim irony that Ivan Tony's shirt sponsor, Brentford, is a betting company Credit : PA/Nigel French
B this detailed ruling by the Football Association Commission on Ivan Toni's gambling addiction is more than enough to indicate that this young footballer's pathetic attraction to betting will not be easily resolved.
Toni, of course, plays in a T-shirt ” Brentford, which bears the name of the Hollywoodbets online betting company, one of six Premier League clubs this season with a shirt sponsor from the gambling sector.
From the 2026-27 season, online bookmakers will no longer be on Premier League jerseys, although everything else will remain, including Football League jerseys. Football is drowning in gambling advertising. From perimeter shields, to stadium screens, to posters that stand up to you as gentlemen. The front of the shirt is perhaps the most sacred of all these places.
Even now, children's t-shirt replicas are made without a sponsor if it's an online bookmaker – a longstanding policy that shows the game's aversion to the compromises it makes with that kind of money. In any case, whatever clubs get from the betting industry is not enough.
The time has come for a legislated tax on football betting. A simple suggestion, but be aware that without football, there is no football betting. Game IP is a fundamental part of the UK sports betting industry, valued at around £18bn a year in 2019.
If the gambling industry insists on being in the stadium and on your television, then you will have to pay much more for this privilege.
Removing brands from T-shirts is largely a symbolic gesture
Online betting acts like a parasite on British football's significant place in the national consciousness. The removal of betting brands from Premier League shirts is largely a symbolic gesture that makes little difference in the long run when advertising is so pervasive. Indeed, there is a reason players like Brentford, Leeds United, Southampton, Newcastle United and even Everton put online betting sites on their shirts – for many of these clubs these brands is the only show in town.
The same can happen to the winners of the championship play-off final, who have only a few months to prepare for the Premier League. For the most part, the only option for many newly promoted clubs seeking shirt endorsement in recent years has been foreign exchange platforms, cryptocurrencies and online betting.
These are companies for which visibility is an existential issue. Without this, they will lose customization in favor of almost identical competitors. Major brands such as automakers, telecoms, airlines and financial services take much longer to make important marketing decisions. This is fine for established Premier League clubs for whom relegation is no problem, but not for newcomers trying to close a deal quickly.
These approvals usually only cost around £5-10m depending on the state of the market. For a defensive midfielder, this is barely enough. It's not even close to being a fair reward for the way football helps support the betting industry. It's a long way to go in this country to find someone who doesn't have an opinion on this game of ours, and many are willing to defend that opinion with their money.
Horse racing is a good example
>Horse racing has long been subject to a statutory tax that recognizes the sport's primary contribution to the gambling industry. Martin Glenn, former chief executive of the Football Association, proposed it after his offer to sell Wembley Stadium was rejected. The FA, Premier League, Rugby Union and the England and Wales Cricket Board, among others, have teamed up to campaign for the tax as part of the Gambling Act 2005 submission to the government.
Gaming the industry must pay for its core product. The tax would mean the sport no longer has to put up with the ads that permeate the game and make it look so compromised when punishing one of its own for losing control in pursuit of what has become an inevitable part of the game. After Brexit, changing the laws of the United Kingdom is within the reach of politicians.
Since the start of the 2017-2018 season, the FA has taken the admirable and costly position of refusing any bet approvals. However, next weekend's FA Cup Final and the ensuing England match, the betting industry will be all over the place. It may not be allowed to put their logos in the background behind Gareth Southgate's head, but everything else will be fair game. The FA Cup is the oldest knockout competition in the world. The betting industry must pay for the resonance it creates in the minds of its players.
It will help in some way to recognize the value she gets from football and the impact it has on some lives. As a professional footballer, Tony went through all of the FA's gambling education programs as well as his cousin's experience in football, whom the FA accused of doing the same. What are the chances for the vulnerable among us, who pay for the privilege, to be subjected to relentless betting propaganda?
It's been a tough week for Tony. The famous young footballer eventually realized his responsibility and paid dearly for it eight months of his career and a £50,000 fine. When he returns in January, he will likely have to deal with cruel jokes from opposition supporters for a long time to come.
The question facing the gambling industry is whether it is ready to make such a device. He has to pay for the sport he relies on, while releasing so many clubs from the contracts they have to make with the betting industry.
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