BC.Game Controversy Puts UK White Label Sponsorships at Risk

White label sponsorship deals are in the sights of lawmakers in Great Britain. The decision to review such practices was confirmed by the gambling minister, Baroness Twycross, earlier this month.

During a conference by GambleAware, the minister acknowledged the growing number of white label deals, explaining that she is in discussion with the gambling regulator, the Gambling Commission, regarding the impact of such agreements.

White Label Deals Under Fire

Now, an expert in laws and regulations warned that the review of the white label deals may ultimately put them “under threat.” That is the opinion of Melanie Ellis, a partner at Northridge Law, who was recently interviewed on the topic by NEXT.io.

The popular white label deals enable offshore gambling operators to sign agreements with firms that offer branded and licensed platforms. Subsequently, those gambling firms are permitted to ink sponsorship agreements with UK-based sports teams. While ultimately those gambling operators need to direct customers to their website that holds a license from the Gambling Commission, additional controls that prevent British customers from accessing their offshore websites need to be implemented, according to Ellis.

In the words of the expert: “Whilst such arrangements are lawful, the comments from Baroness Twycross reflect a growing sense that they represent something of a loophole if, in reality, the intention is to advertise the global brand via British football, rather than the GC-licensed site.” The Northridge Law partner argued that with white label agreements, there’s always the risk of British players accessing the gambling website of the brand that doesn’t hold a license. While Ellis outlined that usually, such companies dedicate efforts to direct traffic to their licensed website, the use of VPN may circumvent such restrictions.

According to the expert, the review of white label deals may result in the addition of license conditions that would prohibit the agreements between sports teams and gambling companies offering their services in other markets across the globe. Ellis also pointed to an alternative that may enforce restrictions, particularly for customers from Great Britain.

BC.Game’s Legal Hurdle in Curaçao Continues

The latest development comes at a time when the crypto casino that is also Leicester City Football Club’s main sponsor, BC.Game, faces licensing threat amid bankruptcy controversy. The hurdle comes after Curaçao’s Gaming Control Board sounded the alarm about the operator’s financial stability as well as compliance with regulations.

Amid the legal battle in Curaçao, BC.Game closed its UK operations late last month. The company’s UK-regulated website stopped accepting new customer registrations as of November 14, the week prior to the launch of its bankruptcy trial. Despite the concerns, Leicester City was reassured by BC.Game that this won’t affect their mutual agreement.