Before the Premier League moved to ban gambling companies from front-of-shirt sponsorships, betting brands had already become deeply connected to football finances across the world.
Now, Softfootball understands that betting company involvement is simply evolving rather than disappearing.
Reports suggest Betway secured naming rights for South Africa’s top division, the Premier Soccer League, in a deal reportedly valued around R300 million per year, while also being linked with a possible training kit sponsorship involving Manchester United FC worth around £18 million annually.
The situation highlights the financial difference between football markets.
In England, gambling companies are now shifting toward training kits, sleeve sponsorships, and stadium advertising after regulations pushed them away from front-of-shirt deals. Several Premier League clubs are reportedly entering the new season without confirmed shirt sponsors, raising questions about whether clubs will accept significantly lower commercial offers outside the betting industry.
Meanwhile, in Africa, betting companies are still aggressively investing in football visibility and league branding.
Softfootball believes African football is not necessarily behind Europe commercially, but rather earlier in a sponsorship cycle that Europe is already trying to regulate more strictly.
The bigger long-term question is whether African leagues and clubs are building sustainable commercial structures that can survive beyond betting sponsorships once tighter regulations eventually arrive there as well.
