Brentford F.C. are the latest Premier League club that is not deterred by the front-of-shirt sponsorship ban after extending its long-standing partnership with Hollywoodbets.
Brentford F.C. has renewed its sponsorship with Hollywoodbets for an extended five years and will transition from front-of-shirt sponsor to the club’s official betting partner.
Hollywoodbets has been the front-of-shirt sponsor for Brentford since its first Premier League season in 2021/22.
Due to the ban on gambling front-of-shirt sponsors from the start of the 2026/27 season, Hollywoodbets will continue to be a partner of Brentford in a more limited capacity.
The extended partnership sees Brentford and Hollywoodbets continue to reward fans of the club with memorable experiences, such as exclusive training ground tours, meet-and-greets with the first team and play-on-the-pitch opportunities at the Hollywoodbets Supporters’ Cup held annually at Gtech Community Stadium
Hollywoodbets also retained rights to in-stadium matchday branding, access to first-team players for meet and greets and the use of Gtech Community Stadium for matchday hosting.
Adam Ward, Head of Partnership Services at Brentford FC, said: “Like Brentford, Hollywoodbets are ambitious and are always thinking long term.
“We are very fortunate to have them as a partner and their commitment to the club over the years has been remarkable. Entering our seventh year proves the strength of the relationship and I’m very pleased to see that Hollywoodbets continues to share our commitment to making a positive impact within both our communities.”
Employment search site Indeed will become Brentford’s front-of-shirt sponsor for the 2026/27 Premier League season.
New ban, same partnerships?
Despite the ban on gambling front-of-shirt sponsorships, Premier League clubs have continued to sign partnerships with operators in different capacities.
Manchester United signed a record £20m-per-year deal with Betway for the betting operator to become the club’s training kit partner. This deal arguably brings just as much exposure as a front-of-shirt sponsorship for Betway.
Due to the front-of-shirt gambling sponsorship ban not extending to the sleeve, Aston Villa re-signed a sponsorship deal with Betano to become the club’s official sleeve partner in a three-year partnership, worth a reported £4m-per-year, whilst Tottenham Hotspur also picked up Betano as its club’s training wear partner.
Insider Sport’s Kieran O’Connor recently argued that the self-imposed ban on front-of-shirt gambling sponsorships is not that consequential in the grand scheme of things, as Premier League clubs can still leverage the large sums of money gambling operators so often offer.
“Are betting companies spending less on football? Hardly. Will they have even more exposure this season? Almost certainly,” wrote O’Connor.
“When I cover these commercial deals, it is usually the smaller clubs because they need the cash to compete in the Premier League. Yet here we are after the ban and one of the biggest sporting giants on the planet has signed on the dotted line.
“Yes, I know they have had gambling partners before, but have they ever had a gambling training kit sponsor?”
