{"id":239193,"date":"2022-10-24T16:34:05","date_gmt":"2022-10-24T21:34:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/?p=239193"},"modified":"2022-10-24T17:16:37","modified_gmt":"2022-10-24T22:16:37","slug":"efls-sky-bet-relationship-needs-to-end-uk-lawmakers-demand","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/efls-sky-bet-relationship-needs-to-end-uk-lawmakers-demand\/","title":{"rendered":"English Football League\u2019s Sky Bet Relationship Needs to End: UK Lawmakers"},"content":{"rendered":"

A group of UK lawmakers want the English Football League to can its partnership with Sky Bet because the relationship has \u201cgone too far.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Sky
Sky Bet and UK soccer has an interdependent relationship which needs to end, according to lawmakers. (Image: The Guardian<\/em>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The group, which includes MPs and a member of the House of Lords, is outraged by the revelation in September that some EFL clubs acted as affiliate marketers<\/a> for\u00a0Sky Bet, accepting a percentage of their fans\u2019 gambling losses.<\/p>\n

In a letter to EFL chairman Rick Parry, the lawmakers urge the league to end its relationship with SkyBet when the contract expires in 2024 and not replace it with another gambling industry partner. It also wants the league to end any legacy affiliate payments to EFL teams that are still in effect.<\/p>\n

The EFL admitted to The Guardian<\/em> last month that the affiliate scheme existed for six years, until the 2019-20 season. It ended when the league opted for a \u201cclearer focus on safer gambling and engaging fans responsibly,\u201d according to Sky Bet. But the company admitted that some clubs still received legacy payments as part of the deal.<\/p>\n

The EFL comprises tiers two to four of English soccer, and does not include the English Premier League [EPL]. However, it\u2019s likely that similar deals were in place with EPL clubs. If so, this has not been publicly disclosed.<\/p>\n

\u2018Obscene Profit\u2019<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The letter to Parry was signed by Liberal Democrat peer Lord Foster of Bath, Labour MPs Dan Carden, Sir George Howarth, Kim Johnson, Rebecca Long-Bailey, and Zarah Sultana, and Ronnie Cowan of the Scottish National Party.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe know that the largest perpetrator of gambling harm is not football clubs, it\u2019s gambling companies who exploit the sport and fans for obscene profit,\u201d they wrote.<\/p>\n

The Sky Bet sponsorship of the Football League means that all 72 clubs are essentially forced to advertise gambling on their shirts, in their stadiums and on their websites \u2013 even if they don\u2019t want to,\u201d <\/strong>the politicians continued. \u201cThis is unacceptable and this latest development is the final straw in a relationship that has clearly gone too far.\u201d<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

They note that last year, Sky Bet was fined \u00a31.2 million by the UK Gambling Commission for sending 100 free spins on slots to self-excluded gamblers.<\/p>\n

Sky-Rocketing Revenues<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Sky Bet has the largest active user-base in the UK, and its growth has largely been driven by its relationship with English soccer.<\/p>\n

Prior to its 2018 acquisition<\/a> by the Stars Group and later Flutter Entertainment, it was owned by UK satellite broadcaster and telecom giant Sky, which for years owned exclusive broadcasting rights to the EPL.<\/p>\n

The financial interdependence between gambling companies and English soccer has come into hard focus over the past few years. Meanwhile, clubs have recently been accused of financially exploiting their fans through so-called\u00a0fan token partnerships<\/a>\u00a0and other dubious crypto schemes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A group of UK lawmakers want the English Football League to can its partnership with Sky Bet because the relationship has \u201cgone too far.\u201d The group, which includes MPs and a member of the House of Lords, is outraged by the revelation in September that some EFL clubs acted as affiliate marketers for\u00a0Sky Bet, accepting […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":36,"featured_media":239194,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[61,82966,16,1074],"tags":[83431,13745,82142],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nEFLs Sky Bet Relationship Needs to End, UK Lawmakers Demand<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Skybet and EFL\u2019s days of interdependence may be numbered. 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