Unlicensed betting operators have used fake news articles, player images and AI-generated video to falsely present leading footballers as official brand partners.
The Guardian reported that illegal online casino and sportsbook operators Nightwin and QH88 had hijacked the identities of Real Madrid midfielder Jude Bellingham and Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes in promotional material designed to deceive customers.
Nightwin is alleged to have bought advertising space on Instagram using a fake BBC-style story claiming Bellingham had launched a betting app called “Bellingham Bet”. The app used a logo incorporating the player’s stylised signature and directed users toward Nightwin, an online casino and sportsbook that is not listed on the Gambling Commission’s British licence register.
QH88, described by The Guardian as a Vietnamese sportsbook and casino site, went further by creating a website around a fictitious association with Fernandes. The operator used an AI-generated deepfake video purporting to show the Portugal international signing an ambassadorial contract with representatives of the brand at Old Trafford.
The Norwegian football website Josimar had the one-minute video analysed by an expert, who identified signs of AI generation including blurred details, continuity errors and generic faces. The Guardian said the flaws would not be obvious to most viewers.
The case shows how illegal operators are moving beyond the unauthorised use of club crests and player photographs into more sophisticated forms of impersonation. For football clubs, players, licensed betting operators and regulators, the use of deepfake endorsements creates a new enforcement problem at the intersection of gambling, image rights, advertising and platform accountability.
Active footballers are restricted from benefiting from betting partnerships under FIFA ethics rules. That makes fabricated endorsements especially damaging, because they can mislead consumers while also creating reputational risk for players and clubs that have no connection to the gambling brands involved.
A spokesperson for the UK Gambling Commission told The Guardian that the regulator takes action when it becomes aware of unlicensed operators and urged consumers to check whether a business holds a Commission licence before depositing money.
The incident underlines the difficulties facing regulators and rights holders when illegal gambling brands operate through offshore structures, shell companies, social media advertising and anonymous digital infrastructure.
For the regulated betting sector, the risk is also commercial. Deepfake promotions and fake media campaigns allow unlicensed operators to trade on the credibility of football stars, clubs and trusted news brands without paying rights fees, meeting compliance standards or offering the consumer protections required in regulated markets.
