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Revealed: Fans at risk as crypto and trading sponsors flood European football
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Georgina Choleva/Spoovio
Gambling-adjacent companies have deals with more than a third of teams in Europe's top five leagues this season, exclusive analysis finds.
Unregulated firms and operators flagged by authorities for posing risks to consumers are among dozens of cryptocurrency and trading sponsors now present across European football, Investigate Europe can reveal.
More than a third of teams in Europe’s five major leagues are partnered with cryptocurrency or trading firms this season. The Premier League is the most saturated with 70 per cent of its clubs having at least one partner. Around three in 10 clubs in La Liga, the Bundesliga and Serie A have similar tie-ups. Some of the companies identified lack licences to operate in Europe.
Platforms selling a dizzying array of investment products, including highly speculative cryptocurrencies, have become go-to sponsors for clubs in recent years. The deals come amid a boom in popularity of online investing and growing restrictions on betting sponsorships.
Among the 14 Premier League clubs that have at least one deal is Manchester City. Its official cryptocurrency partner is OKX, one of the world’s largest exchanges. Earlier this year the Seychelles-registered firm was found guilty of violating US anti-money laundering laws and fined more than $500 million.
OKX is not registered as a crypto asset business with the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) but many of its products are still available there. Its website tells potential UK customers that they will not be covered by the FCA’s consumer protections nor the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. Manchester City and OKX did not respond to requests for comment.
“Football clubs are seen as brands with kudos and these companies want to piggy-back off that. They can reach a demographic who often have some discretionary wealth and existing connections with the traditional gambling industry,” said football finance expert Kieran Maguire from the University of Liverpool. “Crypto investing in particular is a very speculative market and it is really just gambling with a small ‘G’.”
More than a third of teams in Europe’s five major leagues are partnered with cryptocurrency or trading firms this season. The Premier League is the most saturated with 70 per cent of its clubs having at least one partner. Around three in 10 clubs in La Liga, the Bundesliga and Serie A have similar tie-ups. Some of the companies identified lack licences to operate in Europe.
Platforms selling a dizzying array of investment products, including highly speculative cryptocurrencies, have become go-to sponsors for clubs in recent years. The deals come amid a boom in popularity of online investing and growing restrictions on betting sponsorships.
Among the 14 Premier League clubs that have at least one deal is Manchester City. Its official cryptocurrency partner is OKX, one of the world’s largest exchanges. Earlier this year the Seychelles-registered firm was found guilty of violating US anti-money laundering laws and fined more than $500 million.
OKX is not registered as a crypto asset business with the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) but many of its products are still available there. Its website tells potential UK customers that they will not be covered by the FCA’s consumer protections nor the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. Manchester City and OKX did not respond to requests for comment.
“Football clubs are seen as brands with kudos and these companies want to piggy-back off that. They can reach a demographic who often have some discretionary wealth and existing connections with the traditional gambling industry,” said football finance expert Kieran Maguire from the University of Liverpool. “Crypto investing in particular is a very speculative market and it is really just gambling with a small ‘G’.”
Georgina Choleva/Spoovio
Elsewhere, Newcastle have entered into a second season with VT Markets as their 'Financial Trading Partner'. The Australia-based firm offers trading in forex, precious metals and other commodities and instruments. Its website boasts of the “limitless possibilities” available to customers on its platform.
However, Investigate Europe has found that VT Markets has been on the FCA’s official warning list since 2023 and does not hold any domestic authorisation. In Europe, the brand also appears on warning lists in Italy, Belgium and Denmark. The FCA website states that the firm “may be providing or promoting financial services or products without our permission. You should avoid dealing with this firm and beware of scams.”
When attempting to register from the UK, visitors are informed that VT Markets is only covered by South African authorities and users opening an account do so at their “own discretion and initiative”. Similar wording is used by several other firms identified in the analysis. VT Markets has also paid for Facebook adverts citing the Newcastle partnership and targeting UK audiences.
“A simple disclaimer about the lack of consumer protections [doesn't] absolve the firm of all responsibilities. If they are promoting or offering regulated products or services without the necessary permissions, then they could be in breach, and we may take action against them,” a FCA spokesperson said.
Newcastle did not respond to requests for comment, while the Premier League declined to comment.
In October, VT Markets became the official trading partner of the Portuguese Football Federation in the Middle East and North Africa, under the slogan ‘Invest in Greatness’. The firm holds no licence in Portugal, although the platform is accessible to users there. VT Markets failed to respond to requests for comment.
However, Investigate Europe has found that VT Markets has been on the FCA’s official warning list since 2023 and does not hold any domestic authorisation. In Europe, the brand also appears on warning lists in Italy, Belgium and Denmark. The FCA website states that the firm “may be providing or promoting financial services or products without our permission. You should avoid dealing with this firm and beware of scams.”
When attempting to register from the UK, visitors are informed that VT Markets is only covered by South African authorities and users opening an account do so at their “own discretion and initiative”. Similar wording is used by several other firms identified in the analysis. VT Markets has also paid for Facebook adverts citing the Newcastle partnership and targeting UK audiences.
“A simple disclaimer about the lack of consumer protections [doesn't] absolve the firm of all responsibilities. If they are promoting or offering regulated products or services without the necessary permissions, then they could be in breach, and we may take action against them,” a FCA spokesperson said.
Newcastle did not respond to requests for comment, while the Premier League declined to comment.
In October, VT Markets became the official trading partner of the Portuguese Football Federation in the Middle East and North Africa, under the slogan ‘Invest in Greatness’. The firm holds no licence in Portugal, although the platform is accessible to users there. VT Markets failed to respond to requests for comment.
“Football clubs are seen as brands with kudos and these companies want to piggy-back off that. They can reach a demographic who often have some discretionary wealth and existing connections with the traditional gambling industry.”
— Football finance expert Kieran Maguire
Similar issues were discovered with companies sponsoring other teams in the Premier League, as well as in Spain and Italy. The absence of national or EU authorisation means that consumers have less recourse to report alleged wrongdoing and are less protected if an operator goes bankrupt, while companies are able to offer even riskier investment products.
With a ban on front-of-shirt betting sponsorships coming in the Premier League next season, and similar laws already in place across several European leagues, many clubs are turning to deals with gambling-adjacent industries.
Although there is no suggestion of wrongdoing, the findings raisesquestions about how deeply clubs scrutinise potential sponsors. “If you associate your club with a brand, you are suggesting to fans that you trust them,” sports marketing expert Tim Crow said earlier this year when discussing the growing phenomena. “You have to be damn sure you've done your due diligence, so that it doesn't turn out that your fans regret it later.”
A slew of clubs have been left red-faced in recent years after signing deals with crypto and trading firms. Sporting Lisbon terminated its partnership with Bitci in 2022 for alleged non-payment, Atlético Madrid has sued crypto exchange WhaleFin after it reportedly defaulted on a €20 million per season contract, while Leeds United dropped FXVC in 2023 after the FCA revoked its licence over "misleading financial promotions".
Most partnerships identified in the analysis involve companies that are fully regulated and that actively block website access from countries where they have no authorisation. Investigate Europe found 53 partnerships involving 36 companies with European clubs for this season. The logos and branding appear variously on shirt sleeves, stadium billboards, club websites and in social media promotions.
With a ban on front-of-shirt betting sponsorships coming in the Premier League next season, and similar laws already in place across several European leagues, many clubs are turning to deals with gambling-adjacent industries.
Although there is no suggestion of wrongdoing, the findings raisesquestions about how deeply clubs scrutinise potential sponsors. “If you associate your club with a brand, you are suggesting to fans that you trust them,” sports marketing expert Tim Crow said earlier this year when discussing the growing phenomena. “You have to be damn sure you've done your due diligence, so that it doesn't turn out that your fans regret it later.”
A slew of clubs have been left red-faced in recent years after signing deals with crypto and trading firms. Sporting Lisbon terminated its partnership with Bitci in 2022 for alleged non-payment, Atlético Madrid has sued crypto exchange WhaleFin after it reportedly defaulted on a €20 million per season contract, while Leeds United dropped FXVC in 2023 after the FCA revoked its licence over "misleading financial promotions".
Most partnerships identified in the analysis involve companies that are fully regulated and that actively block website access from countries where they have no authorisation. Investigate Europe found 53 partnerships involving 36 companies with European clubs for this season. The logos and branding appear variously on shirt sleeves, stadium billboards, club websites and in social media promotions.
Georgina Choleva/Spoovio
In Italy, seven Serie A teams have 11 sponsors signed up for the 2025/26 season. Inter signed a reported €6 million deal in 2024 with Gate.io, a cryptocurrency exchange. The firm is now registered with Italian authorities, but in 2021 it was flagged by Consob, the national securities regulator, for conducting unauthorised activities.
Inter has added Ultima Markets, a platform for CFDs (a type of short-selling investment) and other products, as its Asia trading partner for this season. The company is not regulated in the EU. Despite this, its website is open to visitors in Italy. The firm even offers “special perks” for customers depending on Inter’s results, including profit bonuses and money back guarantees.
An Inter spokesperson said: “The sponsorship agreement with Ultima Markets applies only to Asia and, within Asia, only to those territories in which the sponsor has the necessary authorisations to sell or advertise its services.” Ultima Markets failed to respond to requests for comment.
It is a similar story with Hantec Markets, a Hong Kong-based firm that has become Atlético Madrid’s trading partner in Latin America for this season. It has no licence covering the EU but its services remain available to users in Spain and across Europe. It informs Spanish visitors that it is not covered by national and EU regulation or consumer protections, and customers registering for an account do so at their own risk. Neither Atlético Madrid or Hantec Markets replied to requests for comment.
Despite the apparent risks for fans, football clubs’ dealings with investment firms continue unabated. Cryptocurrency exchanges poured $565 million into sports sponsorships globally last season, with football alone accounting for 59 per cent of the total spent, according to marketing company SportQuake. Online trading brands, meanwhile, have tripled their spending on sports partnerships since 2019, reaching $183 million, the research estimated.
“There is often a lack of financial education for people buying these investment products in what is a high-risk industry,” said football finance expert Kieran Maguire. “My advice to anybody would be generally to avoid.”
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This story is part of Scam Europe, an investigation project led and coordinated by Investigate Europe and the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network. The series is being published with media partners including Altreconomia, Balkan Insight, EU Observer, The Irish Times, La Libre, Netzpolitik.org, the Observer, Público and Der Standard.
IJ4EU (Investigative Journalism for Europe) provided funding support for the investigation.
Inter has added Ultima Markets, a platform for CFDs (a type of short-selling investment) and other products, as its Asia trading partner for this season. The company is not regulated in the EU. Despite this, its website is open to visitors in Italy. The firm even offers “special perks” for customers depending on Inter’s results, including profit bonuses and money back guarantees.
An Inter spokesperson said: “The sponsorship agreement with Ultima Markets applies only to Asia and, within Asia, only to those territories in which the sponsor has the necessary authorisations to sell or advertise its services.” Ultima Markets failed to respond to requests for comment.
It is a similar story with Hantec Markets, a Hong Kong-based firm that has become Atlético Madrid’s trading partner in Latin America for this season. It has no licence covering the EU but its services remain available to users in Spain and across Europe. It informs Spanish visitors that it is not covered by national and EU regulation or consumer protections, and customers registering for an account do so at their own risk. Neither Atlético Madrid or Hantec Markets replied to requests for comment.
Despite the apparent risks for fans, football clubs’ dealings with investment firms continue unabated. Cryptocurrency exchanges poured $565 million into sports sponsorships globally last season, with football alone accounting for 59 per cent of the total spent, according to marketing company SportQuake. Online trading brands, meanwhile, have tripled their spending on sports partnerships since 2019, reaching $183 million, the research estimated.
“There is often a lack of financial education for people buying these investment products in what is a high-risk industry,” said football finance expert Kieran Maguire. “My advice to anybody would be generally to avoid.”
------
This story is part of Scam Europe, an investigation project led and coordinated by Investigate Europe and the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network. The series is being published with media partners including Altreconomia, Balkan Insight, EU Observer, The Irish Times, La Libre, Netzpolitik.org, the Observer, Público and Der Standard.
IJ4EU (Investigative Journalism for Europe) provided funding support for the investigation.
