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Should betting companies be banned from shirt sponsorship deals?


Should betting firms be banned from sponsoring football?  

6 members have voted

  1. 1. Should betting firms be banned from sponsoring football?

    • Yes
      1
    • No
      5


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Labour has made an interesting suggestion - to ban betting companies from shirt sponsorship deals as part of a drive against a "hidden epidemic" of addiction.

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2017/sep/06/ban-betting-firms-football-shirts-labour-gambling

What do you think about this? And please let's not get party political, but just focus on the proposal. Should something be done about the massive amount of gambling advertising in football? Or would this be another instance of the nanny state in action?

I'm broadly in favour. IMO gambling and football have been linked for as long as I can remember, but it's never been as omnipresent as it is today. And the ubiquity of adverts offering free bets is potentially drawing in a new generation of problem gamblers. And if tobacco companies are banned from advertising, why not Ladbrokes and co?

On the other hand, gambling isn't the only harmful thing out there. Where do you draw the line? McDonalds and Coca-Cola spend a lot on football sponsorship but are hardly healthy. What about them?

Discuss!

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Wait, hasn't the Football League already banned clubs from working with betting companies in any capacity?

I know quite a few years ago, there was outcries after teams like Liverpool wasn't able to do deals with Carlsberg (Alcholic Beverage Companies) and I would assume this will soon happen with betting companies. It seems a trend to ban, rather than limit or put into place a fairer way to move forward. I voted no, but I'm honestly not bothered.

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No! I think betting is now something that is so involved with sport that it only seems right to be able to advertise such a growing trade. Plus the logos of the giants look really smart. Again people trying to solve a problem that is not there. Although i do agree an alternative sponsor should be available for younger children or for fans that are against betting. But 110% against the banning on betting companies as sponsors.

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No @Chris, the Football League is sponsored by SkyBet and Notts were sponsored by Ladbrokes until the summer. 9 of the 20 Premier League clubs are sponsored by betting companies.

43 minutes ago, samwatto2008 said:

Again people trying to solve a problem that is not there.

To quote the NHS website: "There may be as many as 593,000 problem gamblers in Great Britain. The anticipation and thrill of gambling creates a natural high that can become addictive." That's quite a big problem. While football and gambling have a long association, you used to have to take a trip to the betting shop to actually place your bets. Now your first bet is just a couple of clicks away on the internet and often offered for free. It's never been as accessible as it is today, and the whole purpose of these companies is to make it a habit.

I've been known to have the odd flutter myself, but I'm not sure it's appropriate that our clubs and leagues are plastered with these companies' logos the way they currently are. So it's good that it's at least being talked about.

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i think common sense should be applied to things like this.

it should be kept as it is. sponsorship does not have a barring on my decisions but maybe some of the money could be spent on setting up support? i think football requires money to sustain itself. i know the sport is rich but when you cut off ties it could be quite negative.

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@DangerousSausageMay be looking at this closed minded but a logo on a shirt will not increase my chances of betting with a certain company regardless. Plus when i said a "problem that is not there". I worded it slightly wrong, what i mean is betting and gambling is so big in sport now that it seems silly to put restrictions like this in place when it will have little to no impact on whether a person places a bet or not. I admit it is so simple to create a betting account nowadays and with tons of offers on its easy for people to fall in the trap. However i am 18 years old, only just been introduced to betting and arguable the most vulnerable person to fall into this 'addiction' but i haven't been purely because i know my limits to what i can and can't afford. I think its a about moderation and if there is a problem with gambling for whatever reason then appropriate funding from the EFL im sure would be gladly taken with open arms to tackle the problem more appropriately rather than ruining it for a vast majority that enjoy seeing betting companies involved in the game and in or around the ground.

Lets turn the tables, if horse racing didn't have betting stalls because it increased the chances of a non-betting man to start gambling. Do you think they would be removed and result to online gambling via a moblie app for gamblers that wish to do so? Sorry i think not. Therefore football should not be like this either.

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Thanks for the link @Chris, I hadn't seen that. The headline is a bit misleading though - it's about sponsorship of the FA, not the game as a whole. The Football League say it doesn't affect them and the Premier League isn't even mentioned. It does show that momentum is building though.

Interesting post @samwatto2008. If sponsorship didn't increase people's likelihood to buy a certain product, no-one would ever sponsor anything. It jogs our memory that this pastime is available and makes us aware of new betting platforms, which then try to attract new customers with special offers (I'd never even heard of half of the betting companies sponsoring Premier League clubs, but now I know them). It also promotes a positive image of gambling, just as cigarette advertising tried to give smoking a grown-up image. Marlboro Man didn't make you immediately want to rush out and buy a packet of cigs, but he did plant a certain image of smoking deep in our minds. Generations of schoolkids took up smoking because they felt it looked "grown-up".

Your horse racing example does flag up a possible legal issue though - betting companies could appeal against a government ban from football on the grounds of their involvement in horse racing. However, if it's banned by the game's governing authorities this isn't such an issue.

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In an ideal world, there should be no shirt sponsorship at all. Sadly, it's become part and parcel of the game - even teams like Barcelona and Athletic Bilbao, who resisted shirt sponsorship well into the 21st century, have now given in, because it's just so lucrative.

I suppose you can draw the line at banning sponsors whose trading activities are forbidden to under-18s, but then you've also got things like Just Eat, who sponsored Derby in the past (not sure if they still do), which promote obesity (and it's a rising problem in the UK, believe me)... and then you had payday loan companies like Wonga... so it's all a grey area. Can you ban things that are legal yet unethical?

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theres nothing wrong with shirt sponsors, it does not make you want to gamble or play golf. :lol:
its just promotion really and not many people will actually pay attention to the shirt imo. its just branding thing.


If it had no effect the companies wouldn't do it...


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