• Online operator Virgin Bet has signed a major new partnership with broadcaster TNT Sports to sponsor its UK coverage of the UEFA Europa League and Conference League.
• The deal will see Virgin Bet branding featured across all live match coverage for the 342 games broadcast on TNT Sports channels and the Discovery+ streaming platform.
• The move marks a significant expansion into football for Virgin Bet, a brand that has historically focused its major sponsorship budget on British horse racing.
• The partnership highlights a strategic shift in the market, with operators increasingly turning to broadcast sponsorships as the Premier League’s ban on front-of-shirt gambling deals looms.
• The deal follows UEFA’s own growing embrace of the betting industry, with bet365 and Betano also holding major official partnerships with its club competitions.

Virgin Bet, the online sports betting brand operated by Livescore Group, has secured a major new broadcast partnership with TNT Sports. The deal will see the operator’s branding become a prominent feature across all of the broadcaster’s UK and Ireland coverage of the UEFA Europa League and UEFA Conference League for the upcoming season.

The agreement gives Virgin Bet high-visibility placements during live matches, in editorial programming, and across TNT Sports’ digital and out-of-home advertising. “ Partnering with TNT Sports gives us an incredible platform to put Virgin Bet in front of football fans during some of the biggest nights in European football,” said Dominic Vye, Marketing Director of Virgin Bet.

A Strategic Shift into Football

The move represents a significant strategic shift for Virgin Bet. While the brand has an existing presence in football through its sponsorship of Absolute Radio’s weekend coverage, its major marketing investments to date have been heavily focused on horse racing, including title partnerships for major events at Cheltenham and Ayr.

This new, high-profile deal with TNT Sports signals a clear ambition to increase its market share among the UK’s massive and highly engaged football audience.

The Evolving Landscape of UK Football Sponsorship

Virgin Bet’s investment in a broadcast partnership is a shrewd move that reflects the rapidly changing landscape for gambling advertising in UK football. This deal comes as the industry is adapting to a major regulatory shift.

• The Push (Away from Shirts): The Premier League’s voluntary ban on front-of-shirt gambling sponsorships is set to take effect from the end of the current 2025/26 season, closing off a key, if controversial, advertising channel.
• The Pull (Towards Broadcast and UEFA): In stark contrast to the Premier League’s stance, European football’s governing body, UEFA, has fully embraced commercial partnerships with the betting sector. Betano is an official sponsor of the very competitions Virgin Bet will now advertise around, while bet365 is an official partner of the Champions League.

A New Focus for Operators

This deal, alongside TNT Sports’ separate agreement with BoyleSports to sponsor its Premier League coverage, highlights a clear trend. As one major marketing channel (shirt sponsorship) is phased out, operators are strategically reallocating their significant marketing budgets to other powerful and compliant assets like broadcast sponsorships. The battleground for visibility in UK football is clearly shifting from the players’ chests to the television screen, and Virgin Bet has just secured a major piece of that new territory.