Put your shirt on it: Gambling’s shifting relationship with professional sports

The relationship between the gambling and sport industries continues to come under scrutiny, both in England and overseas – but the results are contrary. While English football has taken a tentative step towards reducing its commercial reliance on gambling companies^[1], at the international level and in the U.S.A, the direction of travel is quite the opposite.

Using examples from English football, cricket and the USA, this article explores the evolving approach to the relationship between gambling and sport. The authors highlight some of the difficulties and challenges sports bodies have faced trying to enforce regulated measures in this area as the landscape has evolved.