On April Fool’s Day, when the country expects pranks and punchlines, the UK gambling sector is facing something far less amusing. A drastic hike in betting taxes is pushing regulated operators to the margins, just as criminal betting networks are gearing up for a World Cup windfall.
It’s a watershed moment for the sector. The increase in Remote Gaming Duty announced in the Budget will take effect. It was designed to bolster the public purse. But by nearly doubling the tax on regulated firms to 40%, the Government is undermining the viability of regulated gambling operators that pay UK taxes, employ thousands, invest in UK sport, and uphold world-leading player safety standards – just months before a World Cup that criminal networks are preparing to exploit. There’s nothing funny about that.
We are already seeing the fallout as regulated firms are already cutting investment in UK sport while their unlicensed rivals expand aggressively. At Entain, we have had to make the difficult decision to end Coral’s long-standing sponsorship of the Coral Cup – an association with Cheltenham Festival dating back to 1974. When the tax environment becomes this hostile, discretionary spending on British sport is the first casualty. But as regulated firms are forced to retreat, the vacuum is being filled by a mushrooming black market, sometimes with links to organised crime, that targets problem gamblers and young people. These unlicensed operators not only pay no tax – they feed gambling addiction by deliberately targeting at‑risk players, free from the duty‑of‑care obligations that define the regulated sector.
The timing could not be worse. Illegal gambling is already exploding in the UK, now thought to be approximately 10% of the market, having multiplied in recent years. As we head into a World Cup summer, unlicensed operators are sharpening their knives. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime has predicted the 2026 tournament could see the illegal market actually eclipse the regulated industry in total volume. Without swift action, the World Cup will be the single largest recruitment drive for criminal betting networks in history.
What is most galling is the wall of silence from those who should be the guardians of the game.
I recently wrote to the Premier League regarding clubs accepting sponsorship money from these offshore predators. On 31 January, Newcastle United quietly unveiled a new sponsorship deal with 8Xbet—an unlicensed, Asian‑facing bookmaker that has no operating licence anywhere and has been linked to a former white‑label network shut down for anti‑money‑laundering breaches. Its logo is now appearing on LED boards at St James’ Park, visible to millions of UK viewers despite the company having no permission to operate here. It’s absurd that while the League prepares a voluntary ban on front-of-shirt gambling logos next season, it continues to lobby for unregulated brands to remain on shirt sleeves and LED hoardings.
As the new Independent Football Regulator begins shaping the licensing framework that will govern the game for years to come, it has a vital opportunity to ensure that only UK‑licensed and regulated operators have a route into English football. We are fully engaging with this process, and we hope its latest consultation will lead to clear, enforceable rules that prevent clubs from becoming vehicles for unlicensed firms linked to financial and other crimes. Getting these licensing standards right now will do more to protect the integrity of the sport than any retrospective enforcement ever could. These standards must also enshrine the core principle that only regulated operators — the only ones investing heavily in responsible-gambling safeguards – should ever be allowed to advertise within British sport.
A consultation is welcome, but not sufficient. In the time it takes to review responses and draft policy, unlicensed brands will sign new kit deals that give them another full season of visibility. We cannot afford to wait another year while the black market grows.
Some will claim this is merely industry self‑interest. They are wrong. When INTERPOL1 reports links between illegal gambling and human trafficking, cyber‑slavery compounds and money‑laundering networks; when 420,000 British children are already gambling – entirely through the black market; when unlicensed brands with no operating permission anywhere are appearing on Premier League LED boards—that is not an industry problem. It is a societal and national problem.
The government, football authorities, social media platforms, and the regulated sector need to come together to fight this. That must now mean a clear and united commitment to shutting unlicensed operators out of British sport and digital advertising altogether. We should be prosecuting the worst offenders who knowingly market illegal gambling to UK consumers; requiring social media and online platforms to implement real‑time API‑based licence verification so that only UK‑licensed operators can advertise; and empowering the ASA to take faster, firmer action against any unlicensed brand that appears on a shirt, LED board, website or feed.
At Entain, we are developing our own regulatory playbook with these tailored solutions in mind — from verification technology to enforceable sponsorship standards — so that policymakers have practical, operational tools ready to implement. Unless we start enforcing against unlicensed advertising and apply a simple ‘UK‑licence‑only’ rule across football and digital media, this country will lose safer gambling and the associated tax revenue on it for good. That will make fools of all of us.