Crystal Palace have agreed a multi-year shirt sponsorship deal with software infrastructure company Temporal, replacing Asian betting firm Net88 as the club’s main front-of-shirt partner ahead of the Premier League’s voluntary ban on gambling sponsors.
The agreement marks Palace as one of the first top-flight clubs to secure a replacement sponsor from outside the betting sector following the regulatory shift, which will prohibit gambling brands from appearing on the front of match shirts from next season.
Temporal, a US-based software firm specialising in cloud infrastructure for artificial intelligence systems, was founded in 2019 and was valued at US$5 billion earlier this year after raising US$300 million in a funding round led by Andreessen Horowitz. Its technology is used by companies including OpenAI, Netflix, JPMorgan Chase and Vodafone.
As part of the partnership, the company’s logo will feature on Crystal Palace’s men’s and academy kits. Temporal will also run computer science and AI workshops for young people across South London.
Clubs in English football’s top flight will be barred from front-of-shirt betting sponsorships after this season, ending a significant revenue stream for many mid-table and lower-tier sides.
The rule change has triggered a wider scramble for replacement sponsors, with industry observers suggesting sectors such as technology, pharmaceuticals and financial services are likely to fill the gap.
Crystal Palace were among 11 Premier League clubs needing to find new front-of-shirt partners ahead of the ban. Chelsea and Newcastle United also have existing deals due to expire at the end of the current season.
The shift has created what some industry figures describe as a buyers’ market, potentially lowering deal values but widening the range of brands willing to engage with clubs outside the traditional betting sector.
Palace are the first of those 11 clubs to confirm a replacement sponsor from outside their existing portfolio. Brentford have extended their partnership with job search platform Indeed, while Bournemouth upgraded its agreement with insurance group Vitality in December to include shirt-front branding.
Everton, currently sponsored by Stake, are also reportedly close to announcing financial services firm CMC Markets as their new shirt sponsor in a three-year deal worth UK£30 million (US$40.3 million).
While betting firms will no longer appear on shirt fronts, they will still be permitted to hold sleeve and official partnership deals, meaning gambling industry spending is expected to remain part of Premier League commercial activity.
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