WEST HAM are set to sever ties with their biggest sponsor Betway next year following their role in the alleged betting scam that could see Lucas Paqueta banned for life.
The online gambling firm was the first company to sound the alarm about the volume of bets placed on Paqueta to be booked in West Ham games last season which led to the Brazilian star being charged with spot-fixing and the FA demanding a life ban from football.
West Ham are furious with the FA, with SunSport revealing yesterday that they are considering mounting a legal challenge to prevent them hearing the case.
The club are considering going to the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Laussane to argue that the FA due not have the jurisdiction to give Paqueta a life ban.
West Ham are also understood to be unhappy with Betway, particularly that they did not speak to them before reporting the suspicious bets to integrity investigators.
Sources linked to the club insist that the decision to move on from Betway is not linked to the Paqueta case.
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West Ham will honour their existing £10 million-a-year shirt deal with Betway, which has one more season left to run.
However, the club are already searching for new sponsors for the start of the 2025/26 season.
West Ham were already considering other options for the 2026/27 campaign onwards due to a new government ban on front-of-shirt gambling advertising that kicks in that summer.
But the Paqueta case may accelerate their plans to move on from Betway.
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Gambling firms will still be allowed to have sleeve sponsorship deals from 2026/27, but Betway are unlikely to be considered for that deal by West Ham.
The FOUR games Paqueta has been charged for
LUCAS PAQUETA has been charged by the FA over four specific games…
FIRST INCIDENT – West Ham 0-2 Leicester, 60th minute
The Brazilian was booked for lunging into Leicester’s Boubakary Soumare from behind.
After initially playing the advantage, referee Jarred Gillett eventually pulled it back and brandished the yellow.
SECOND INCIDENT – West Ham 1-1 Aston Villa, 70th minute
Four months later against Aston Villa Paqueta slid into John McGinn inside the centre circle, completely missing the ball and instead catching his legs.
THIRD INCIDENT – West Ham 3-1 Leeds, 65th minute
At the end of the 2022-23 campaign against Leeds at the London Stadium Paqueta tripped Crysencio Summerville from behind.
The foul prevented the visitors from breaking on the counter attack.
FOURTH INCIDENT – Bournemouth 1-1 West Ham, 93rd minute
With just a few minutes remaining on the opening day of the season, Paqueta jumped up for an aerial challenge but instead handled the ball.
The referee, who was standing directly in front of him, was quick to brandish the yellow.
Betway were the first to report the flurry of bets based on Paqueta to be booked last year.
Their suspicions were raised by the fact that many of them came from new account holders living on Paqueta Island, off the coast Island off the coast of Rio de Janeiro.
Paqueta is accused of deliberately getting booked in four Prem games – against Leicester in 2022, plus Aston Villa, Leeds and Bournemouth in 2023 – to make money for friends.
Betway sources told SunSport that they are looking forward to working with West Ham next season, but would not comment on their commercial relationship.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
