UK Operators Say No to FA Demand for UK-Style 'Integrity Fees'

The UK sports betting industry is scoffing at a suggestion from the Football Association (FA) that they start sending a chunk of their revenue back to professional sports leagues. It’s the UK equivalent of a form of graft the US leagues call, “integrity fees,” and it’s just about as popular as its US counterpart.
The suggestion for a slice of the action came in an interview with FA CEO Martin Glenn that appeared in the UK Telegraph late last week. In that interview, Glenn suggested that the FA should start getting some sort of “fair return” from the regulated sports betting industry. He went on to suggest that this type of payout would only be fair since gambling operators benefit from the FA’s, “intellectual property.”
Reactions to Glenn’s comments from the gambling industry were swift and to the point.
Gillian Wilmot, chair of the Senet Group a trade group representing the betting industry pointed out that the betting industry already supports the football industry in the form of sponsorships. Those logos that appears on football jerseys aren’t placed out of good will, but are there because someone in the gaming industry is paying for them.
Wilmot went on to say that the suggestion is, “going in the opposite direction of travel to what most reasonable people think is sensible.”
Other industry figures pointed out that the sports betting business already pays out 10 percent of its profits to the horse racing industry.
Glenn didn’t go much further with his suggestions for how the FA could wring out cash from the betting industry. He did not mention that similar attempts by American leagues have gone nowhere.