Everton’s main shirt sponsor Stake has given up its licence in Great Britain after an investigation was launched into an advert featuring pornstar Bonnie Blue.
The video shows the Stake logo on the screen while Blue is stood outside Nottingham Trent University vowing to ‘sleep with 180-barely legal 18 year olds’.
It has now been deleted and was never promoted by an official Stake account.
However, the matter is now being probed by the Gambling Commission due to concerns over sexual content being used to promote gambling, and Stake – an Australian online betting firm – has decided to leave Great Britain as a result.
Blue – whose real name is Tia Billinger – is not included in the investigation and there is no suggestion of any wrongdoing on her part.
She hit the headlines last month after setting herself the target of sleeping with the most men ever in 12 hours.
Everton front-of-shirt sponsor Stake has given up its GB license
The online betting firm has given up its license amid an investigation into an advert featuring pornstar Bonnie Blue (pictured)
The OnlyFans star went on to sleep with 1,057 men in 12 hours before revealing graphic details and providing behind-the-scenes footage of her ‘record-breaking’ feat.
The Gambling Commission has promised to write to Everton – who have the Stake Logo on the front of their shirts – to remind the club of its responsibilities to ensure that unlicensed gambling websites promoted on their shirts are unable to be accessed in GB.
Officers at the club will be warned that they could face up to 51 weeks in jail and unlimited fines if they promote ‘unlawful gambling websites’.
The regulator has also stated that Stake is stopping new registrations and will no longer do business in GB beyond March 11.
According to the BBC, Everton do not plan to replace Stake as their front-of-shirt sponsor.
Stake brands itself the ‘world’s leading cryptocurrency casino and sportsbook’, and is run under license by TGP Europe, a firm based in the Isle of Man, using a ‘white-label’ agreement.
Stake has now released a statement confirming it has ‘made a strategic decision in mutual agreement with TGP Europe to exit white-label agreements and focus on securing local licenses through our in-house platform and operations, building upon our growth in key regulated markets such as our recent expansions into Italy and Brazil.’
The Gambling Commission will write to Nottingham Forest about their sponsorship deal with Kaiyun
Premier League clubs Nottingham Forest and Leicester City will also receive letters from the Gambling Commission amid concerns about their own sponsorship deals.
Forest have an agreement with Kaiyun, and Leicester are sponsored by BC.Game, with neither site being licensed in GB.
