Junk food ‘avoids advertising regulation’ with top level UK sports sponsorship

Junk food firms have more than 90 current sponsorship deals within top UK sports amid growing concerns over their impact on public health, finds an investigation published by The BMJ.

Brands including Cadbury, Pepsi, KP Snacks, Walkers, Kellogg’s, Red Bull, and Monster are among those with ongoing partnerships with sporting stars, top flight teams, or official governing bodies.

They include deals with top men’s and women’s football stars Cole Palmer, Bukayo Saka, Leah Williamson, and Lauren James, England cricket captain Ben Stokes, cyclist Tom Pidcock, and Formula 1 driver Lando Norris.

The findings come amid the women’s Euro 2025 football tournament in Switzerland, with an expected audience of 500 million people around the world. Official sponsors include Just Eat Takeaway, Hellmann’s mayonnaise and PepsiCo—brands that will feature prominently on LED boards beside pitches, and on interview backdrops during press conferences.

While the food industry has a long history of sponsoring sports, experts say the adverts have become more “pervasive” and “prominent” than ever, now with huge digital marketing campaigns in the run-up to events and brands being able to target fans through sports stars’ social media.

Beth Bradshaw, policy and advocacy manager at Food Active, part of the public health charity Health Equalities Group, says, “It’s so important because it’s kids. Some of these sports personalities, these football stars, these rugby stars…They are kids’ idols.”

In January 2026, the government is due to bring in legislation banning adverts for products that are high in fat, salt, or sugar (HFSS) before the 9pm TV watershed, but this regulation has been repeatedly delayed due to lobbying by the food industry.

The BMJ‘s findings demonstrate “genuine sportswashing,” argues Labor MP and GP Simon Opher, who tabled a parliamentary question to ask the health secretary “whether he plans to bring forward legislative proposals to ban sponsorship of sports events by unhealthy food brands.”

The government responded that it had “no current plans to ban the sponsorship of sports events by food brands associated with less healthy food or drink products or ban the advertising of less healthy food or drink products at sports events.”

It added, “We continue to review the evidence of the impacts on children of less healthy food or drink product advertising and will consider where further action is needed.”

The BMJ investigation also exposes the extent to which sports sponsorship deals will swerve these new regulations, allowing unhealthy products to appear on daytime TV, including Hula Hoops on England cricket shirts, Red Bull logos beside football pitches, and Kit Kat branding alongside Formula 1 race tracks.

Experts say sports sponsorship gives junk food firms a ‘health halo effect’ by making their products seem more acceptable and less harmful to consumers. This is supported by research that shows it improves children’s opinions of unhealthy brands.

“These players are in absolute peak physical condition, and they are unfortunately promoting products that just do not generally feature in athletes’ diets,” says Food Active’s Bradshaw.

Some public health experts are calling for junk foods’ sponsorship of sports to be banned due to the levels of exposure it gives to brands and the potential impact on children’s health.

“We need to have some morals and ethics about the types of products we associate with sport,” argues Robin Ireland at Glasgow University’s school of health and well-being.

“We should not be allowing food brands to be using sport to promote consumption of their unhealthy products to young people. It simply should be banned.”

Junk food firms have more than 90 current sponsorship deals within top UK sports amid growing concerns over their impact on public health, finds an investigation published by The BMJ.

Brands including Cadbury, Pepsi, KP Snacks, Walkers, Kellogg’s, Red Bull, and Monster are among those with ongoing partnerships with sporting stars, top flight teams, or official governing bodies.

They include deals with top men’s and women’s football stars Cole Palmer, Bukayo Saka, Leah Williamson, and Lauren James, England cricket captain Ben Stokes, cyclist Tom Pidcock, and Formula 1 driver Lando Norris.

The findings come amid the women’s Euro 2025 football tournament in Switzerland, with an expected audience of 500 million people around the world. Official sponsors include Just Eat Takeaway, Hellmann’s mayonnaise and PepsiCo—brands that will feature prominently on LED boards beside pitches, and on interview backdrops during press conferences.

While the food industry has a long history of sponsoring sports, experts say the adverts have become more “pervasive” and “prominent” than ever, now with huge digital marketing campaigns in the run-up to events and brands being able to target fans through sports stars’ social media.

Beth Bradshaw, policy and advocacy manager at Food Active, part of the public health charity Health Equalities Group, says, “It’s so important because it’s kids. Some of these sports personalities, these football stars, these rugby stars…They are kids’ idols.”

In January 2026, the government is due to bring in legislation banning adverts for products that are high in fat, salt, or sugar (HFSS) before the 9pm TV watershed, but this regulation has been repeatedly delayed due to lobbying by the food industry.

The BMJ‘s findings demonstrate “genuine sportswashing,” argues Labor MP and GP Simon Opher, who tabled a parliamentary question to ask the health secretary “whether he plans to bring forward legislative proposals to ban sponsorship of sports events by unhealthy food brands.”

The government responded that it had “no current plans to ban the sponsorship of sports events by food brands associated with less healthy food or drink products or ban the advertising of less healthy food or drink products at sports events.”

It added, “We continue to review the evidence of the impacts on children of less healthy food or drink product advertising and will consider where further action is needed.”

The BMJ investigation also exposes the extent to which sports sponsorship deals will swerve these new regulations, allowing unhealthy products to appear on daytime TV, including Hula Hoops on England cricket shirts, Red Bull logos beside football pitches, and Kit Kat branding alongside Formula 1 race tracks.

Experts say sports sponsorship gives junk food firms a ‘health halo effect’ by making their products seem more acceptable and less harmful to consumers. This is supported by research that shows it improves children’s opinions of unhealthy brands.

“These players are in absolute peak physical condition, and they are unfortunately promoting products that just do not generally feature in athletes’ diets,” says Food Active’s Bradshaw.

Some public health experts are calling for junk foods’ sponsorship of sports to be banned due to the levels of exposure it gives to brands and the potential impact on children’s health.

“We need to have some morals and ethics about the types of products we associate with sport,” argues Robin Ireland at Glasgow University’s school of health and well-being.

“We should not be allowing food brands to be using sport to promote consumption of their unhealthy products to young people. It simply should be banned.”