In the United Kingdom, a new report reveals that illegal sports streams are no longer just violating copyright; they are also becoming a launch pad for unauthorised gambling advertisements.
When sport serves as a showcase for the black market
In 2024 and the first half of 2025, more than 4.7 billion illegal sports streams were consumed by British audiences; an audience that, in 89% of cases, was also exposed to advertisements for unlicensed gambling platforms.
These figures, taken from the report Illegal Streaming of Sports Events and Illegal Gambling produced by the Campaign for Fairer Gambling (CFG) and based on data from the Yield Sec intelligence platform, confirm a dangerous trend: sports piracy is no longer simply content theft, but a promotional tool for the black market in gambling.
Ismail Vali, president of Gaming Compliance International, points out that this model exploits two particularly vulnerable groups: minors and gamblers excluded from the regulated system via the national self-exclusion register (GamStop).
‘Illegal online gambling in Britain is now knocking on the door of a 10% market share, and it has achieved this through the cynical exploitation of two vulnerable groups: children and players who have self-excluded from the Gamstop programme.’
A black market that is expanding under the radar
According to the study, unlicensed operators now account for around 9% of the UK online gambling market, estimated at £8.2 billion, compared to just 2% in 2022. The more internet users turn to pirated streams, the more underground bookmakers find a captive audience.
Analyses also point to a high risk for users, beyond the incentive to gamble: a large proportion of these illegal streams contain malware such as spyware, exposing audiences to cybersecurity threats.
This dual danger — gambling addiction and digital security breaches — represents a new frontier for organised crime on the internet, according to researchers.
Impact on broadcasters and the sports industry
The sports industry itself is feeling the effects of this trend. Major legitimate broadcasters see their broadcasting rights and commercial audience threatened by pirate streams that illegally divert the content they have acquired at great expense.
For leagues, clubs and broadcasters, this loss undermines the market value of media rights, stifles innovation in legal distribution and fragments an ecosystem already under strain from the fragmentation of pay platforms and the consumption habits of younger generations.
Authorities on the front line… but overwhelmed
Faced with the rise of this phenomenon, the British authorities have attempted to respond. In 2025, the government allocated an additional £26 million to the Gambling Commission to step up action against the black market. However, critics argue that this sum is insufficient and that current regulation underestimates the true scale of the problem.
Derek Webb, founder and funder of the Campaign for Fairer Gambling, goes further, stating:
‘Britain is becoming a soft country. We have allowed organised crime to contaminate the global power of British sport.’
This harsh assessment reflects the frustration of an industry faced with the growing association between piracy and illegal gambling, a combination that largely escapes the legal framework and which, according to experts, requires a thorough review of both regulatory strategies and enforcement methods.
While this investigation focuses on the United Kingdom, independent studies indicate that illegal streaming and unauthorised gaming platforms are gaining ground in several other European countries, attracting millions of consumers and evading national regulations.