Racing needs to be on its guard over calls for curbs on gambling advertising

FOBTs are – for once – not the hot issue of the day for the media and politicians when it comes to gambling. The spotlight has now been shone upon the relationship between gambling and sport through partnerships, sponsorship and advertising and, while the focus has largely been on football, it is not a subject racing can afford to ignore.

The World Cup in Russia and the start of the new football season have helped bring the subject back to the fore, as have the recent comments of NHS England chief executive Simon Stevens, who criticised foreign gambling sponsors of Premier League clubs for not making a financial contribution to problem gambling charity GambleAware.

Throw in the embarrassment of links to online gambling firms being found on the junior sections of 15 football clubs and there has been plenty for critics of the industry to get their teeth stuck into in recent days.