UK’s black market to take £800m in bets across the new Premier League season

Around £20m staked with criminal gambling operators over the opening weekend alone

The illegal gambling black market is expected to take up to £800m in bets across the new Premier League season, with around £20m staked with criminal gambling operators over the opening weekend alone.

That figure is forecast to climb by a further £200m next season, taking illegal betting on the Premier League to around £1bn a year, following April’s planned increase in General Betting Duty.

The Premier League is the most watched football league in the world and one of the biggest betting events in the calendar. Analysis suggests a typical weekend sees between £15m and £20m staked with unlicensed operators – millions of pounds on every single match, with the first round of fixtures expected towards the top of that range.

Yet while millions of fans back their teams safely with regulated operators, criminal gambling firms are also lining up to cash in, offering betting products that sit entirely outside UK law and provide none of the standards, safeguards or consumer protections required in the regulated sector.

The industry has removed betting sponsors from the front of Premier League shirts from this season, a step the BGC supports as part of raising standards. The BGC has also welcomed the Government’s plan to stop Premier League clubs accepting sponsorship from gambling operators that do not hold a UK licence, and has called for that action to go further to prevent illegal firms sponsoring any sport in the UK.

But as visible, regulated advertising reduces, demand does not disappear – it shifts into less regulated channels, where illegal operators are already growing rapidly.

It comes as the regulated sector faces mounting pressure from higher taxes, with H2 Gambling Capital warning a further increase in General Betting Duty due from April next year will pile even more pressure on licensed operators.

Recent independent analysis from WARC found unregulated operators now account for almost half of all UK gambling advertising spend, while separate analysis by H2 Gambling Capital forecasts the amount staked with illegal operators in Britain will almost double from nearly £17bn this year to more than £33bn by 2028.

Grainne Hurst, Chief Executive of the Betting and Gaming Council, said: “Millions of football fans will enjoy a bet safely with regulated operators this season, backing their team week in, week out.

“But the criminal black market is looking to cash in too, taking millions of pounds on every round of matches while offering customers none of the protections found in the regulated sector. These operators pay no tax, fund nothing and answer to no one. Every pound they take is a pound lost to British sport and to the Treasury.

“Licensed operators are regulated in Britain and follow strict rules on consumer protection, safer gambling and robust financial safeguards. Illegal black market operators do not. They undermine player protections, avoid taxes, ignore safer gambling standards and put consumers at serious risk. With illegal betting on the Premier League on course to reach £1bn a season, we support action that protects fans, upholds standards and keeps customers safe within the regulated market.”

The regulated betting and gaming sector supports more than 109,000 jobs, contributes £6.8bn to the UK economy and raises over £4bn in tax each year.

The BGC said tackling the criminal gangs behind illegal gambling websites must remain a priority to ensure customers stay within the regulated market, where protections are in place.