University of Nottingham Study Finds Gambling Brands in One-Third of Premier League Highlights

A pre-print study from the University of Nottingham has quantified the extent to which football viewers encounter gambling branding through highlight packages, raising questions about the effectiveness of existing voluntary agreements designed to limit gambling marketing in sports.

The research analyzed Sky Sports highlights from the final 10 matches of the 2025/26 Premier League season and FIFA YouTube highlights from 17 World Cup matches. The findings show a stark disparity: gambling brands were visible during 32% of Premier League highlight screen time, compared to less than 2% of World Cup footage. This represents the first comparative analysis of unhealthy commodity branding (which includes alcohol and high-fat, high-salt, high-sugar foods alongside gambling) across these two major football competitions.

Gambling emerged as the most prominent unhealthy commodity category in Premier League coverage. When all unhealthy commodities are combined, branding appeared during 38% of Premier League highlight footage versus 19% of World Cup highlights. These figures take on additional significance given YouTube's reach: 81% of UK children aged 3 to 17 regularly use the platform, making highlight packages a primary vector for commercial exposure among younger audiences.

The study identified a critical gap in existing regulatory frameworks. The Premier League's voluntary agreement to withdraw gambling sponsorship from the front of players' shirts addressed only one placement category. The research found that roughly three-quarters of gambling brand appearances fell outside this front-of-shirt restriction, appearing instead on sleeves, back collars, and other visible locations during match footage. These exposures remain unaddressed by the existing accord.

Reasearchers also documented gambling advertising served before highlight packages themselves. In some instances, viewers encountered up to 30 seconds of gambling advertising before approximately three minutes of match footage, creating additional exposure pathways beyond in-match branding.

The scale of potential reach underscores the commercial significance. The Premier League reports weekly media reach of 1.87 billion people globally, while the 2022 FIFA World Cup engaged approximately five billion people across media platforms. Lead researcher Nathan Davies emphasized that this exposure magnitude suggests most gambling branding in Premier League highlights escapes current voluntary restrictions.

Existing research has established linkages between exposure to gambling marketing and behavioral outcomes. Studies examining sports-related gambling advertising have connected such exposure to increased betting frequency, higher spending, and unplanned expenditure among viewers. The prominence of gambling branding in highlight footage therefore carries public health implications alongside commercial considerations.

The findings arrive as the 2026/27 Premier League season begins and amid ongoing regulatory discussions across the UK gambling sector. The research suggests that voluntary agreements may prove insufficient to limit gambling exposure through digital sports content, particularly as highlight packages increasingly serve as primary consumption modes for younger audiences. Industry operators and regulators will likely face renewed pressure to address this exposure pathway, potentially through updated frameworks that account for the placement diversity evident in video highlight content rather than focusing narrowly on kit sponsorship.