Spreadex and Sunderland AFC allow logoless shirt sales
The move could help avoid criticism of gambling sponsorship in football.
UK.- The issue of gambling sponsorship in football remains under scrutiny in the UK amid a flurry of new deals, including in the Premier League despite the pledge to introduce a voluntary ban on front-of-shirt gambling sponsorship from 2026.
Amid the continued controversy, Spreadex and Sunderland AFC have hit on a compromise. They’re giving fans the option to buy 2024-25 home shirts without the branding of the financial trading and sports betting firm.
Spreadex has been the Championship club’s main sponsor since 2022, and its logo will remain on all men’s playing kits for next season. But fans will be able to buy authentic shirts without the logo, something that was previously only possible for youth kits, which are banned from displaying gambling logos.
Spreadex head of marketing Andy MacKenzie said: “We have a fantastic relationship with the club and were only too happy to work on making some replica kits available to fans without our logo on the front.
“We appreciate some supporters may want the choice of having non-branded shirts to buy and are delighted to have been able to help make this happen. We look forward to continuing our support for the club and fans with this initiative and in growing the partnership with continued competitions and giveaways to supporters throughout the season.”
UEFA reportedly seals new gambling sponsors to replace bwin
Meanwhile, in other football sponsorship news, it’s been reported that Entain’s bwin has decided not to extend its deal with UEFA. According to SportBusiness, it has chosen not to renew its three-year partnership for the UEFA Europa League and UEFA Conference League, which expired at the end of the 2023/24 season.
The rights to the two competitions are sold as a package by Team Marketing. SportBusiness has suggested that a replacement has already been lined up, again from the betting industry. The deal should be announced before next year’s competitions.
