England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has taken a significant step against gambling sponsorship in cricket by confirming that The Hundred will not feature any visible betting sponsorships from the 2027 season onwards.
Ahead of the 2026 edition of the tournament, the ECB also avoided the prospect of a franchise wearing a gambling company's logo on the front of its shirt after all eight teams secured primary sponsors from other industries before the opening match.
The move comes as The Hundred continues to position itself as a family-friendly competition while adapting to major commercial changes following private investment into all eight franchises.
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ECB confirms blanket ban on visible betting sponsorships from 2027
Although The Hundred permitted gambling sponsorships on a one-season, last-resort basis for 2026 due to difficult market conditions, the ECB has now made it clear that visible betting sponsorships will disappear completely from next year.
Speaking to ESPNcricinfo, The Hundred managing director Vikram Banerjee confirmed the governing body's stance.
"From next year, it'll be banned. You have to acknowledge that gambling and the betting industry is a massive part of sports sponsorship… [But] there'll be no visible betting sponsorships from next year, which is a powerful stand and stronger than any other cricket league."
While some franchises may still display gambling logos on shirt sleeves or trousers during the 2026 season, no team ended up using a betting company as its front-of-shirt sponsor.
The ECB had earlier allowed franchises to pursue betting partnerships only as a final option because of commercial challenges, particularly after the Premier League decided to prohibit front-of-shirt gambling sponsors from the 2026-27 season.
The board also introduced several safeguards, including allowing players to opt out of wearing sponsor-branded shirts on religious or personal grounds and ensuring children's replica kits would not feature gambling branding.
The Hundred enters a new era
The 2026 season marks a significant transition for The Hundred after private investors acquired stakes in all eight franchises in deals worth more than £500 million.
With host counties and new investors now responsible for commercial operations, teams negotiated their own sponsorship agreements for the first time instead of relying on the ECB's central partnership model.
Only three franchises had confirmed front-of-shirt sponsors during the official kit launch in June, but the remaining teams later secured deals with companies from sectors including financial services, logistics, health insurance and real estate.
Banerjee described the process as a collaborative effort that ultimately ensured every franchise found a suitable commercial partner without relying on gambling firms.
Beyond sponsorship changes, the ECB is also looking to simplify The Hundred's presentation by moving away from the term "sets" and placing greater emphasis on the competition's 100-ball format.
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The tournament will also introduce a new trophy known as the Hundred Helix, combining results from both the men's and women's competitions to crown an overall champion alongside the individual tournament winners, with equal prize money on offer across all three trophies.