English FA cuts ties with gambling partner Ladbrokes

Arvind Hickman
By Arvind Hickman | 26 June 2017
 
The FA is severing ties with gambling sponsor Ladbrokes.

England's Football Association (FA) has terminated its partnership with betting shop Ladbrokes as it moves to distance itself from the gambling industry.

The decision to cut ties from lucrative gambling sponsorship deals comes in the wake of several controversies, but most notably after dishing out an 18-month ban to Burnley midfielder Joey Barton, who is reported to have placed as many as 1,260 bets over a 10-year period, including at least 15 on games that involved his own club.

In a statement, English football's governing body said: "In the May FA board meeting, it was agreed that the FA would end all sponsorships with betting companies starting from the end of the 2016-17 season.

“The decision was made following a three-month review of the FA’s approach to it as a governing body taking betting sponsorship, whilst being responsible for the regulation of sports betting within the sport’s rules.

“As a consequence, the FA has mutually agreed with Ladbrokes that its current partnership with The FA will be terminated from June 2017."

Barton, a talented footballer known for his aggression on the field, is reported to have blown around £15 million in gambling losses over a decade.

The industry latest figures show that online gambling is a growing problem in the UK and particularly sports betting.

Gamblers lost £12.6 billion in 2015, the last year figures were released. Of this, about a third (£3.6 billion) was lost on online gambling, a record amount.

Labrokes-English-FA.jpg

Football is particularly hooked on betting. About half of the Premier League's 20 clubs carry betting shop logos on their playing kits, all of them have at least one gaming partner and several pundits, including Robbie Savage, are backed by betting companies including William Hill.

In Australia, sports betting expenditure (which is different to gambling losses) grew by 30.1% to $815 million over the same period.

The issue has been a hot topic recently with the government looking to restrict the amount of betting advertising that runs during live sports coverage as part of its media reforms package.

There have been several calls by parents and community groups for Australian sports clubs, particularly from the two most popular codes AFL and NRL, to ban sports betting sponsorship.

The Western Bulldogs is one AFL club that has prohibited sports betting sponsorship and explained the reasons why to AdNews last year.

So far the major codes administration bodies have resisted calls to cut ties with sports betting shops. They argue that working with gambling bodies is important to eradicte match fixing.

In 2016, the NRL signed a $60 million with Sportsbet that runs until 2020. The AFL has a $10 million per annum deal with Crownbet as its official gambling partner.

TV networks are also heavily backed by betting shops to the tune of about $135 million per annum in advertising. They have complained that bans unfairly target broadcasters while allowing online platforms, such as Facebook, free reign to carry ads. 

The FA's move is likely to embolden opponents of sports betting marketing, including South Australian crossbench senator Nick Xenophon, who has lobbied for a ban for years, The Greens leader Richard Di Natale and Deakin University associate professor Samantha Thomas, who has studied the adverse effects of sports beting marketing on children.

Joey-Barton-File-Photo.jpg

Joey Barton's career is all but over after being banned due to a gambling problem.

Have something to say on this? Share your views in the comments section below. Or if you have a news story or tip-off, drop us a line at adnews@yaffa.com.au

Sign up to the AdNews newsletter, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter for breaking stories and campaigns throughout the day.

comments powered by Disqus