The UK’s regulatory Gambling Commission (UKGC) has fined TGP Europe, a white label, Asia-focused, betting firm that front-of-shirt sponsors a cluster of top English Premier League (EPL) teams, £3.3 million (US$4.41m) for money laundering breaches.
With all 15 domain names it’s been operating in the UK now down, TGP Europe has effectively been run out of the British iGaming market.
This is the second time the controversial betting outfit–which has alleged links to Macau gambling racketeers–has been fined by the UKGC.
In 2023 it was penalised £330,000 (US$441,485) by the UK gambling regulator for similar AML breaches.
Illegal Sponsorship
This latest UKGC sanction has left a number of EPL teams–among them AFC Bournemouth, Fulham FC, Newcastle United and Wolverhampton Wanderers–nutmegged by what has transpired to be illegal sponsorship deals with TGP.
Among the TGP brands sponsoring the football teams were bj88, which has a front-of-shirt sponsorship deal with Bournemouth; Fulham’s principal shirt sponsor, SBOTOP; DEBET, which has front-of-shirt advertising with Wolves; and Sportsbetio.uk, which has an ad deal with Newcastle and major shirt sponsorship agreement with Championship team Southampton.
“TGP failed to carry out sufficient checks on business partners…breaching anti-money laundering rules,” the UKGC asserted in its ruling.
The iGaming company has previously been linked to notorious Chinese gangster Alvin Chau, who was jailed in 2023 in Macau for illegal gambling and racketeering.
“It is right that they have now exited the British market.
“Following TGP’s exit, several online gambling operators can no longer lawfully offer gambling facilities to consumers located in Great Britain.
“These sites, previously operating under TGP’s licence, may not provide adequate protection against criminal activity or gambling-related harm and should not be available to GB consumers with immediate effect.”
Spot Checks
The UKGC has now directly contacted a number of English football teams and warned them of association with unlicensed gambling sites.
“We have already been in contact with several football clubs today to highlight the impact of the withdrawal from the market by TGP and make clear that we will be carrying out checks-without further notice-to ensure these sites remain blocked,” stressed Pierce.
“We will also conduct ongoing spot checks as necessary to ensure they are not accessible to consumers in Great Britain by any means. 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.
And Pierce added: “All licensed operators with similar arrangements to TGP should take notice of the action taken in this case.”
