For the first time since it was sponsored by Granada Bingo in 1988, my football team’s shirt sponsor this season was a gambling company. Amongst supporters there was some dismay about the association but that has now turned into a resigned acceptance that this is just the way things are going.

In the Premier League eight out of the 20 teams have gambling companies as a shirt sponsor and it is almost impossible to watch any matchday coverage without seeing some form of advertising for betting companies. That is a concern because the money that flows into the industry often means that the adverts are high-budget affairs fronted by recognisable celebrity figures that tend to glamourise the possibility of winning big sums of money.

Of course the reality is that most people lose. That is how the companies make their money in the first place. Furthermore gambling is as much an addiction as drugs or alcohol and can wreak similar levels of devastation in the lives of those affected. One survey commissioned by GambleAware suggested that 2.7% of adults in the UK were problem gamblers while 7% of people had been negatively affected by someone else’s gambling problems.

The proposed solution to this problem is to ban gambling companies from advertising on football shirts and, if recent reports are accurate, that could be implemented later on this year. Undoubtedly we are at a point where our understanding of gambling as an addiction would make such a ban a broadly popular move but would it really make a difference? According to the government any restriction would be based on the available evidence but given that betting would remain an integral part of the matchday experience for viewers, attendees and punters alike it feels like such a measure would be a drop in the ocean. The only tangible impact it would have is on football teams who have been struggling to generate revenue without fans coming through the gates and would be hit even harder by the loss of sponsorship opportunities.

The truth is that the gambling industry is still mostly regulated by the Gambling Act 2005 but things have changed a lot since then. One of the reasons that the sector has weathered the pandemic so well is because most bets are now placed online and even when there wasn’t live sport to bet on there is an increased popularity of virtual slot machines and bingo games. On the other side of things the Gambling Commission has been described as “toothless” by a Parliamentary Committee.

Only removing shirt sponsorships will not be enough in itself. The whole industry needs to be reviewed and changes made to bring it up to date. A simple ban on gambling is not the solution but more steadfast regulation alongside support for those who are struggling with addiction would be welcome.