Latest news with #TGPEurope
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Four Premier League clubs warned over gambling sponsors
Four Premier League clubs have been warned by the Gambling Commission over their relationship with an unlicensed gambling business. Bournemouth, Fulham, Newcastle, and Wolves, as well newly promoted Burnley, are all sponsored by betting websites run by TGP Europe. The company surrendered its UK licence after an investigation found it had failed to "carry out sufficient checks on business partners" and breached "anti-money laundering rules". A letter sent to the clubs has warned they "may be liable to prosecution…if they promote unlicensed gambling businesses that transact with consumers in Great Britain". TGP Europe brands bj88 (Bournemouth), SBOTOP (Fulham), DEBET (Wolves), and (Burnley) all currently appear as match day shirt sponsors. FUN88 was Newcastle's shirt sponsor from 2017 to 2023, before becoming the club's "official Asian betting partner". BBC Sport has approached the five clubs and TGP Europe for comment. In February, the Gambling Commission contacted Everton, Nottingham Forest, and Leicester about three other TGP Europe websites that had already lost their licence. Stake (Everton), kaiyun (Nottingham Forest), and (Leicester) have all remained on the respective shirts since. TGP Europe surrendered its licence after being told it needed to pay a £3.3 million penalty and "make significant improvements" to continue trading. The Gambling Commission says it is seeking assurances "that consumers in Great Britain cannot transact with the unlicensed sites". "Clubs will be asked to demonstrate that they have assurance that any steps to geo-block the sites are effective, recognising that some blocking can be easily bypassed by use of tools such as a Virtual Private Network", they added. From beer to betting - how have football shirt sponsors changed? Premier League to limit gambling sponsors on shirts More than half of this season's Premier League teams have a gambling company as their shirt sponsor. Premier League clubs have agreed to withdraw gambling sponsorship from the front of their matchday shirts by the end of the 2025-26 season. The Coalition to End Gambling Ads raised concerns about TGP Europe's practices with the Gambling Commission. Director Will Prochaska said: "Action against TGP Europe is welcome, but warnings against advertising unlicensed gambling companies ring hollow." "Premier League clubs – including Everton and Leicester – have been advertising unlicensed sites for months." The Gambling Commission's head of enforcement John Pierce said: "We have already been in contact with several football clubs to highlight the impact of the withdrawal from the market by TGP and make clear that we will be carrying out checks - without further notice - to ensure these sites remain blocked. "We will also conduct ongoing spot checks as necessary to ensure they are not accessible to consumers in Great Britain by any means. Should any of these sites be available to GB consumers, we will take appropriate action. "It is essential that football clubs play their part in protecting fans and GB consumers who may be exposed to advertising of these sites through their sponsorship arrangements from harm or exploitation. All licensed operators with similar arrangements to TGP should take notice of the action taken in this case." Listen to the latest Football Daily podcast Get football news sent straight to your phone
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Four Premier League clubs warned over gambling sponsors
Four Premier League clubs have been warned by the Gambling Commission over their relationship with an unlicensed gambling business. Bournemouth, Fulham, Newcastle, and Wolves, as well newly promoted Burnley, are all sponsored by betting websites run by TGP Europe. The company surrendered its UK licence after an investigation found it had failed to "carry out sufficient checks on business partners" and breached "anti-money laundering rules". A letter sent to the clubs has warned they "may be liable to prosecution…if they promote unlicensed gambling businesses that transact with consumers in Great Britain". TGP Europe brands bj88 (Bournemouth), SBOTOP (Fulham), DEBET (Wolves), and (Burnley) all currently appear as match day shirt sponsors. FUN88 was Newcastle's shirt sponsor from 2017 to 2023, before becoming the club's "official Asian betting partner". BBC Sport has approached the five clubs and TGP Europe for comment. In February, the Gambling Commission contacted Everton, Nottingham Forest, and Leicester about three other TGP Europe websites that had already lost their licence. Stake (Everton), kaiyun (Nottingham Forest), and (Leicester) have all remained on the respective shirts since. TGP Europe surrendered its licence after being told it needed to pay a £3.3 million penalty and "make significant improvements" to continue trading. The Gambling Commission says it is seeking assurances "that consumers in Great Britain cannot transact with the unlicensed sites". "Clubs will be asked to demonstrate that they have assurance that any steps to geo-block the sites are effective, recognising that some blocking can be easily bypassed by use of tools such as a Virtual Private Network", they added. From beer to betting - how have football shirt sponsors changed? Premier League to limit gambling sponsors on shirts More than half of this season's Premier League teams have a gambling company as their shirt sponsor. Premier League clubs have agreed to withdraw gambling sponsorship from the front of their matchday shirts by the end of the 2025-26 season. The Coalition to End Gambling Ads raised concerns about TGP Europe's practices with the Gambling Commission. Director Will Prochaska said: "Action against TGP Europe is welcome, but warnings against advertising unlicensed gambling companies ring hollow." "Premier League clubs – including Everton and Leicester – have been advertising unlicensed sites for months." The Gambling Commission's head of enforcement John Pierce said: "We have already been in contact with several football clubs to highlight the impact of the withdrawal from the market by TGP and make clear that we will be carrying out checks - without further notice - to ensure these sites remain blocked. "We will also conduct ongoing spot checks as necessary to ensure they are not accessible to consumers in Great Britain by any means. Should any of these sites be available to GB consumers, we will take appropriate action. "It is essential that football clubs play their part in protecting fans and GB consumers who may be exposed to advertising of these sites through their sponsorship arrangements from harm or exploitation. All licensed operators with similar arrangements to TGP should take notice of the action taken in this case." Listen to the latest Football Daily podcast Get football news sent straight to your phone
Yahoo
12-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Everton sponsor leaves UK after porn ad probe
A front-of-shirt sponsor of Everton football club is giving up its license in Great Britain after an investigation into an ad featuring porn actress Bonnie Blue. In the social media video shot outside Nottingham Trent University, she said she was there "as promised" to "sleep with 180 barely-legal 18 year olds", with Stake's logo on the screen. Campaigners had urged the culture secretary to take action over the advert for using sexual content to promote gambling to young people. The Gambling Commission said it will write to Everton to warn it of its responsibilities to ensure that the unlicensed gambling websites promoted on shirts cannot be accessed from Great Britain. The regulator is also writing to Nottingham Forest, which has sponsorship from Kaiyun, and Leicester City which has a deal with because both sites are also unlicensed in Great Britain. Australian online betting firm Stake decided to exit Great Britain after the Gambling Commission launched its investigation. The BBC understands that Everton has no plans to replace Stake as a main shirt sponsor. The English Premier League attracts a vast global audience, and clubs frequently strike sponsorship deals with firms that do no business in the UK. Stake, whose logo appears on Everton football shirts, calls itself the "worlds leading cryptocurrency casino and sportsbook". It allows customers to bet on sports or virtual casino games, though GB users cannot use Bitcoin and other digital currencies. It is run under license by a firm based in the Isle of Man, TGP Europe, using a "white label" agreement, frequently used by global gambling firms that want to start up in the UK without a large initial investment in infrastructure and development. The Gambling Commission said Stake's GB business will stop taking new registrations and will close altogether on 11 March. Stake said in a statement that it has "made a strategic decision in mutual agreement with TGP Europe to exit white-label agreements and focus on securing local licenses through our in-house platform and operations, building upon our growth in key regulated markets such as our recent expansions into Italy and Brazil." The regulator will warn the clubs that their officers could face up to 51 weeks in jail and unlimited fines if they were found guilty of promoting "unlawful gambling websites". It wants an assurance from the clubs that they have "carried out due diligence on their white label partners and that consumers in Great Britain cannot transact with the unlicensed sites," it said. That could involve the clubs specifying that the websites block UK users, including those using a Virtual Private Network (VPN), which can allow users to access unlicensed websites by disguising which country they are accessing the internet from. It added that customers can contact a gambling operator via the operator's website if they still needed to obtain their funds after the firm had closed. In January, Bonnie Blue – whose real name is Tia Billinger – tried to break the world record for sex with the largest number of men in 12 hours. She was not included in the Commission's investigation and there is no suggestion of wrongdoing on her part. The advert was not posted by an official Stake account and has now been deleted. Premier League clubs have agreed to drop gambling companies as main shirt sponsors from the end of the 2025-26 season, but will still take gambling ads elsewhere, such as shirt sleeves and digital advert hoardings. There has been increased scrutiny from both the government and campaigners about the widespread use of gambling firms to sponsor football clubs. Research from 2024 suggested that the number of betting adverts during the opening weekend of the Premier League season almost trebled compared with the year before. Campaigners including former Stoke City player Tony Kelly have warned about the "dark side" of sports betting, including gambling addiction. Everton declined to comment. The BBC has contacted Leicester City, Nottingham Forest, Bonnie Blue aka Tia Billinger, and TPG Europe for comment. 29,000 gambling ads in Premier League weekend, says research Gambling slots online to be limited to £5 per spin
BBC News
12-02-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Everton's sponsor leaves GB amid porn ad probe
A front-of-shirt sponsor of Everton football club is giving up its GB license amid an investigation into an ad featuring porn actress Bonnie the social media video shot outside Nottingham Trent University, she said she was there "as promised" to "sleep with 180 barely-legal 18 year olds", with Stake's logo on the had urged the culture secretary to take action over the advert for using sexual content to promote gambling to young Gambling Commission said it will write to Everton to warn it of its responsibilities to ensure that the unlicensed gambling websites promoted on shirts cannot be accessed from Great Britain. The regulator is also writing to Nottingham Forest, which has sponsorship from Kaiyun, and Leicester City which has a deal with because both sites are also unlicensed in Great online betting firm Stake decided to exit Great Britain after the Gambling Commission launched its BBC understands that Everton has no plans to replace Stake as a main shirt English Premier League attracts a vast global audience, and clubs frequently strike sponsorship deals with firms that do no business in the UK. Stake, whose logo appears on Everton football shirts, calls itself the "worlds leading cryptocurrency casino and sportsbook". It allows customers to bet on sports or virtual casino games, though GB users cannot use Bitcoin and other digital is run under license by a firm based in the Isle of Man, TGP Europe, using a "white label" agreement, frequently used by global gambling firms that want to start up in the UK without a large initial investment in infrastructure and Gambling Commission said Stake's GB business will stop taking new registrations and will close altogether on 11 March. Stake said in a statement that it has "made a strategic decision in mutual agreement with TGP Europe to exit white-label agreements and focus on securing local licenses through our in-house platform and operations, building upon our growth in key regulated markets such as our recent expansions into Italy and Brazil."The regulator warned the clubs that their officers could face up to 51 weeks in jail and unlimited fines if they were found guilty of promoting "unlawful gambling websites".It wants an assurance from the clubs that they have "carried out due diligence on their white label partners and that consumers in Great Britain cannot transact with the unlicensed sites," it could involve the clubs specifying that the websites block UK users, including those using a Virtual Private Network (VPN), which can allow users to access unlicensed websites by disguising which country they are accessing the internet added that customers can contact a gambling operator via the operator's website if they still needed to obtain their funds after the firm had January, Bonnie Blue – whose real name is Tia Billinger – tried to break the world record for sex with the largest number of men in 12 hours. She was not included in the Commission's investigation and there is no suggestion of wrongdoing on her part. The advert was not posted by an official Stake account and has now been deleted. Premier League clubs have agreed to drop gambling companies as main shirt sponsors from the end of the 2025-26 season, but will still take gambling ads elsewhere, such as shirt sleeves and digital advert has been increased scrutiny from both the government and campaigners about the widespread use of gambling firms to sponsor football from 2024 suggested that the number of betting adverts during the opening weekend of the Premier League season almost trebled compared with the year including former Stoke City player Tony Kelly have warned about the "dark side" of sports betting, including gambling declined to comment. The BBC has contacted Leicester City, Nottingham Forest, Bonnie Blue aka Tia Billinger, and TPG Europe for comment.
