The University of Bristol has published its fourth annual study of gambling advertising during the Premier League’s opening weekend. The research tracks Premier League gambling ads across television, radio and social media. It examines advertising exposure and changes since 2023.

  • 15,571 messages: Researchers recorded 15,571 gambling messages (ads and brand appearances), up 41.6% from 2023. The total was below 2024 and 2025 levels. The analysis covered 21–24 August 2026.
  • Live football: Seven televised matches contained 11,205 gambling messages, visible for almost 20% of broadcast time. Newcastle against Liverpool recorded 2,702 messages, averaging over 12 per minute. Pitchside advertising (ads around the pitch) accounted for 72%.
  • Shirt advertising: The front-of-shirt gambling sponsorship restriction was associated with an estimated 10.5% reduction in live-match messages. Gambling branding on sleeves and training kits increased by around 363%. Researchers recorded 563 such messages.
  • Social media: Researchers identified 1,023 paid gambling ads on Facebook and Instagram, with an estimated combined reach of 153.2 million (account exposures, not unique people). People aged 18–24 accounted for 16.6 million instances of reach. Around 93% of gambling content marketing (promotional posts) was not clearly labelled as advertising.
  • Regulation: Project lead Dr Raffaello Rossi said: “This cannot be presented as a success for self-regulation.” The report calls for tighter rules covering gambling advertising during matches and sponsorship by unlicensed operators. Premier League gambling ads were also compared with advertising during sports broadcasts in Germany, the US and Canada.
  • Authors and funding: The study was written by Raffaello Rossi, Saeid Moradipour, Jamie Wheaton, Maria Moxey and Johannes Singer. It was co-funded by the University of Bristol Business School and the Bristol Hub for Gambling Harms Research, rather than commissioned by an external organisation. The full 34-page research report (PDF) is available on the university’s website.

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