Premier League Crypto Sponsors Under Fire In UK Regulatory Warning

The UK’s financial watchdog has raised concerns to Premier League football clubs about sponsorships with unauthorized crypto firms.

UK FCA Has Warned Premier League Football Clubs Over Crypto Sponsors

According to a statement from the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the regulator has written to football clubs in the country over concerns about sponsorship deals with unauthorized crypto firms and trading platforms. The clubs mainly include, but are not limited to, teams from the English Premier League.

The English Premier League sits at the top of the footballing pyramid in Britain and is the biggest football league in the entire world based on viewership numbers. Due to the league’s popularity, clubs part of it have been able to land some lucrative sponsorship deals from various type of companies, including those from the digital asset sector.

Two clubs in particular have prominent sponsorships with crypto firms: Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspurs. In both cases, the deal includes the showcase of the partner’s logo on the team’s kit sleeves. The FCA noted that deals with unauthorized firms can expose clubs to legal liability, money laundering risks, and serious reputational damage. “Unauthorized” in this context refers to companies that aren’t present on the regulator’s Firm Checker tool.

Lucy Castledine, the FCA director of consumer investments, said:

Millions of football fans trust their club’s badge. Clubs should not let unauthorised financial firms exploit that loyalty by putting potentially dodgy products in front of millions of fans.

Spurs’ sponsorship is with the American crypto exchange Kraken, which shows up on the Firm Checker tool via its parent firm Payward. City’s partner, OKX, however, comes up as “unauthorized” when performing a search. The Manchester-based team has potentially already received contact from the regulator, as it said in the announcement, “Where the FCA has already identified concerns, it has spoken directly to the club.”

The FCA has also warned football fans regarding this, advising them to check these crypto financial services being advertised through club sponsorships before using them. Castledine noted:

A logo on a shirt means one thing: that firm paid for it. Fans should always check the firm using our Firm Checker tool before buying a financial product and help us show the red card to those that would risk your money.

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