France’s National Gambling Authority is investigating Robinhood’s jersey sponsorship of Ligue 1 club OGC Nice over potential illegal gambling promotion, L’Équipe reported Tuesday. The probe centers on whether displaying Robinhood’s logo constitutes advertising for its prediction markets business, which French authorities classify as unauthorized gambling.
French law criminalizes advertising unlicensed gambling operations, though Robinhood’s event contracts are currently US-only. The ANJ blocked Polymarket in July and warned that promoting unauthorized platforms by any means is a criminal offense. The multi-year Robinhood-Nice partnership, announced July 1, includes front-of-shirt branding, stadium signage, and digital channels. No formal enforcement action has been published yet, and it remains unclear whether the ANJ contacted the club directly.
The investigation follows a coordinated warning from nine European gambling regulators urging sports organizations to verify operators’ legal status before signing sponsorship deals. No financial details of the Nice agreement were disclosed.
**
FXnCO Insight
** Trading platforms expanding into sports marketing face escalating European regulatory risk as gambling authorities increasingly treat prediction markets as unlicensed betting operations requiring immediate legal vetting.
Source: Finance Magnates