Football and Betting Companies
Gambling is one of the fastest-growing industries in the world and has become a major source of economic funds in many countries including the United Kingdom.
The success of the gambling companies is not only due to its wide customer base but also thanks to their partnerships with the most popular sport like soccer.
Today, the connection of football and betting companies didn’t stop on sponsorship but it has expanded enabling both sides to raise and prosper. The partnership with football clubs is one of the gambling firms’ policies to extend their businesses. Thus, it should come as no surprise if the gambling field has attracted the attention of more and more people. Here are some cases that show the link between betting companies and football.
Sponsorship
Many Premier League clubs collaborate with the gambling companies in which the players wear shirts adorning logos of these betting firms. Apart from the shirts, the gaming industries sponsor the entire stadiums as well. As the UK is known for having the leading betting industries, the partnerships among the soccer leagues continue to increase. There is high demand in sites for betting that accept credit cards among football fans. The cooperation will have mutual advantages and show the desire of the two concerned sides to develop.
In fact, the gambling firms have burst into the mainstream which persuades several football clubs to collaborate with them. According to the study done by the researchers at the Goldsmiths University of London, during the Match of the Day’s show (football highlights and analysis program broadcast on BBC), the logos appeared on the screen for 71% and 89%. This means that football clubs are among the effective advertisements for the gambling industries.
Partnerships with popular players
The gambling industries go further when it comes to increasing their development. Aside from signing partnership agreements, the operators also collaborate with the renowned players. For example, the online casino 32Red signed a deal with Derby County club and its favourite player Wayne Rooney.
In this cooperation, England’s record goalscorer wore the No 32 when joining the club. Another case is the Irish betting company Paddy Power partnered with the Huddersfield Town players. In this partnership, these players wore shirts with a big logo of Paddy Power on the pitch for a pre-season friendly.
VIP Programs
Another manner to show the deep link between the betting firm and the football sector is the VIP option. The benefit to be a VIP in the gambling site is not a surprise anymore and the operators always find policies to attract several VIP punters. The gamblers who use a huge amount of money called the VIP players or High Rollers.
They can lose a lot of money and gambling companies don’t hesitate to reward them with more than expected. According to the Guardian, the bettors who lost huge sums of money are often granted with football tickets. What’s more, Ladbrokes offered a return airline ticket from Dubai to London that worth up to £2,000 in the goal to attend to the match between Tottenham and Arsenal.
Target Global Customers
Since the Premier League has attracted the global audience, the gambling operators are aware of this advantage so they won’t miss any opportunities to grow their businesses. For instance, when the operators sponsor the Premier League clubs and their brands feature on the clubs’ shirts, they are not only targeting the British punters but the global fan base of the Premier League.
These gambling operators even expand their businesses in Africa. One of the cases is SportPesa, the main sponsor of Everton football that has extended its projects in the East African nation, in Kenya. Unfortunately, the betting company suspended its gambling operations there due to the rise in tax on the betting sector.
Advertising
Advertising is another way to prove the connection between betting firms and football clubs. Nonetheless, advert during live sports is now banned in the UK due to the rise of the gambling problems there. Despite the prohibition of the gambling ads on television before and after the matches, the betting companies continue to seduce more and more customers.
One of the most notable advertisements was done by Sky Bet. This ad talked about Paul Merso, a former Arsenal player who spoke his problems of compulsive gambling. This advertisement had to be withdrawn by Sky Bet. This ban is not only a measure to regulate the gambling industries, but it is also a step to reduce their access to advertising platforms.