TGP Europe’s Exit Leads to UKGC Issuing Football Club Warnings
Premier League clubs including Newcastle United and AFC Bournemouth have been warned by UK regulator the Gambling Commission (UKGC) over links to TGP Europe.
Football teams have been warned over promoting gambling sites. © Peter Glaser, Unsplash
Key Facts:
- Five Premier League clubs have been linked to TGP Europe
- The white-label operator has pulled out of the UK market
- TGP Europe backed out after the firm was ordered by UKGC to pay a £3.3 million penalty
- Gambling sponsors will be banned in the Premier League from the start of the 2026-27 season
The operator is a white-label business that ran around 30 different betting websites in the UK.
Those sites included one of TGP’s sites, which signed a two-year deal as AFC Bournemouth’s front-of-shirt sponsor in July 2024.
While the site became Bournemouth’s record sponsor, it was immediately controversial as the BJ88 site was forced to deny being linked to cockfighting in the Philippines.
Bournemouth may now need to rethink the club’s sponsorship plans for 2025-26 as TGP Europe is no longer a licensed operator in the UK after pulling out of the market.
Premier League clubs are also set to be banned from featuring betting brands as their front-of-shirt sponsors from the start of the 2026-27 season.
TGP’s Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Failingsi
UKGC had ordered TGP Europe to pay a £3.3 million penalty over breaching anti-money laundering rules and failing to conduct sufficient checks on business partners.
TGP was also told it would need to make significant improvements if it wanted to continue being allowed to trade in this country, but the company has exited the UK market instead.
This is the second time in recent years TGP Europe has breached UKGC regulations. In 2023, the white-label betting operator was fined £316,250 for AML failures.
Premier League clubs AFC Bournemouth (bj88), Fulham FC (SBOTOP), Newcastle United FC (FUN88) and Wolverhampton Wanderers FC (DEBET) all have links to TGP Europe brands.
Those four teams have been warned by the Gambling Commission and Burnley FC, with the Clarets set to play Premier League football next season after winning promotion.
Protecting Football Fans
The head of enforcement for UKGC, John Pierce, said in a statement that TGP Europe had proven “unwilling or unable” to meet its regulatory standards.
Pierce confirmed that UKGC has contacted the clubs involved and informed them that spot checks will be carried out to ensure the unlicensed betting brands are not accessible, even using methods such as a virtual private network.
He said in a Gambling Commission statement: “Should any of these sites be available to GB consumers, we will take appropriate action. It is essential that football clubs play their part in protecting fans and GB consumers who may be exposed to advertising of these sites through their sponsorship arrangements from harm or exploitation.
“All licensed operators with similar arrangements to TGP should take notice of the action taken in this case. We would like to warn consumers that sites operated by TGP are now unlicensed and may not provide protections against criminality or gambling-related harm.”
Earlier this year, UKGC was in touch with Everton (Stake), Nottingham Forest (kaiyun), and Leicester (BC.GAME) about other TGP websites that had lost their licence.
