Nottingham Forest is poised to start the 2026/27 season without a front-of-shirt sponsor after failing to navigate the market in the wake of a ban on gambling companies. The Premier League agreed to get rid of gambling companies on the front of their shirts in April 2023. Eleven of the 20 teams in the Premier League last season had a gambling company emblazoned on their shirt. Three of those were relegated, leaving eight teams that needed to find a replacement this summer. Six have been successful, but alongside Chelsea - who have had their own sponsor struggles in recent years - Sunderland and Forest look set to go sponsor-less 22 days before the season kicks off. Sean Connell, editor of The Sponsor, an independent sponsorship research and valuation publication, believes they have become victim of "the most competitive and difficult sponsorship environment" in Premier League history. The gambling ban has been looming for over three years and Connell believes some have been guilty of failing to bury their heads in the sand. Mirror Football contacted Chelsea, Sunderland, and Nottingham Forest to request comment. “The profits and revenue have been so much greater than they would have been that nobody has taken any meaningful strides to address this," Connell says. "They have continued to take the money while the sun shone. Now some like Forest and Sunderland are in a difficult position. “I think the clubs have been waiting to see what the highest possible deal is at the last possible moment. For some clubs that strategy worked out, for others like Sunderland and Forest. Nottingham Forest is currently 16th in the Premier League, with 44 points from 38 games, and a goal difference of -3. They have scored 48 goals and conceded 51. Their recent form is DLDWW, and their next fixture is against Coventry at home on September 19.