Entain Urges Premier League Clubs To Drop Unlicensed Betting Partners

Entain has written to 10 Premier League clubs urging them to reconsider commercial partnerships with offshore betting operators that do not hold a licence to operate in Great Britain.

The Ladbrokes and Coral owner has targeted Fulham, Everton, Ipswich Town, Newcastle United, Chelsea, Aston Villa, Coventry City, Nottingham Forest, Tottenham Hotspur and Crystal Palace over agreements involving brands including SBOTOP, Stake, 8XBet, FUN88, VSBet and Chexx.bet.

The intervention comes as the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) consultation examining sponsorship arrangements involving unlicensed gambling operators reaches its 9 September deadline. Entain previously called for clubs to end such agreements when the consultation was launched in July.

Entain Targets Everton’s Stake Partnership

Entain shared a letter sent to Everton Chief Executive Angus Kinnear in which Charles Kovats, the operator's Group Deputy General Counsel, criticised the club's relationship with Stake.

Kovats claimed the partnership “is currently functioning as an implicit stamp of legitimacy for a gambling company that has no social, economic or ethical interest in the UK’s welfare or prosperity nor a legal basis to operate in the UK.”

Entain also raised concerns surrounding Stake's use of cryptocurrency and marketing through streaming platforms, arguing that such activity raises questions around player protection and exposure among younger audiences.

Stake withdrew from the regulated Great Britain market in 2025 after TGP Europe, which previously operated the brand under a white-label arrangement, announced that it would close the Stake.uk.com website. Entain's concerns relate to the continued use of sponsorship agreements to promote offshore gambling brands despite those companies not holding licences to transact with British consumers.

8XBet Partnerships Also Highlighted

Entain has separately focused on 8XBet, which has established sponsorship relationships with Aston Villa, Chelsea, Coventry City, Ipswich Town and Newcastle United.

The company claims one of its representatives was able to create an account with 8XBet while using a VPN from Vietnam and proceed to the point of making a cryptocurrency deposit. Entain also highlighted the operator's use of TestFlight to distribute an app outside conventional app-store channels.

Entain argues that the findings raise questions about the effectiveness of distinguishing sponsorship agreements aimed at overseas audiences from marketing visible to consumers in Britain.

The operator's position is that Premier League clubs risk providing credibility and significant brand exposure to gambling companies that are not subject to the same regulatory requirements as UK-licensed businesses.

Government Considers Future Of Offshore Sponsorships

The letters form part of Entain's wider campaign for tighter controls on commercial relationships between British sports organisations and unlicensed gambling companies.

With the DCMS consultation closing on 9 September, the government is considering whether existing rules governing sponsorship by overseas gambling operators remain appropriate.

Entain has argued that the issue should also be considered in the context of Britain's wider illegal gambling market. The company cited estimates suggesting unlicensed operators account for approximately 9% of the UK's £8.2 billion online gambling market.

The debate comes as both the government and regulated gambling industry increase their focus on offshore operators, including how unlicensed businesses acquire British customers and whether high-profile sports sponsorships provide them with greater visibility or legitimacy.