Sources: Government intervention imminent as £60m West Ham deal to be scrapped
A white paper on gambling reform will be released before the end of the month in a move that could have a knock-on effect on the likes of West Ham, sources have told Football Insider.
The policy proposal has been in the works for years but has been beset by delays because of political turmoil under successive governments.
The white paper is not expected to set out specific curbs on the gambling industry’s involvement in football as the preferred option is for the Premier League to self-regulate.
But it is believed that the proposal could light a fire under the top flight and its member clubs to jump before they are pushed, with a ban on front-of-shirt advertising an inevitability at some point in the near future.
West Ham’s front-of-shirt deal with UK bookmaker Betway is the most valuable gambling sponsorship deal in the top flight at a reported £60million over its six-year contract.
Significantly, the Premier League is likely to allow existing deals to run their courses for up to three years after the moratorium is introduced.
Hammers vice-chairman Karen Brady, however, has revealed that the club is already on the lookout for a new sponsor outside the gambling sector.
The white paper is, sources have told this site, expected to be released before the House of Commons goes to recess on 30 March.
Activists have also called for a ban on perimeter advertising in football, although there is less political pressure in that department at this stage.
Any new legislation is not expected to extend to the EFL, whose ecosystem is even more reliant on the gambling industry than the Premier League.
In other news, Daniel Kretinsky plotting £150m-plus spend even if West Ham get relegated.