Online Gambling Brands Big Into Sports Sponsorships
Running professional sports teams is a massively expensive undertaking these days, what with enormous player salaries to cover every month, and large grounds and stadiums to maintain. Which is why sponsorships are crucial in bolstering a team's funds. And what better sponsors are there then highly successful and cash-flush online gambling firms?
With the global online gambling industry growing in leaps and bounds each year, the world's largest online gaming and betting firms are continuing to rake in the money. But to remain competitive, they have to get their names and brands out there, which is why so many have turned to highly visible and relatively cost-effective sports sponsorships.
And undoubtedly the biggest beneficiary of online gambling sports sponsorships are UK and European football clubs. Rarely can you watch a game of football these days without seeing the name of at least one top online gambling brand splashed across a team's kit, or the advertising sidings that follow the perimeter of the football club's ground.
Online Gaming Sport Sponsorships are Common in England
Online gaming sponsorships of sports are most prevalent in England, France, Italy and Spain and Malaysia, which makes sense as most of these countries have legalised and regulated their online gaming industries. But don't be fooled into thinking that this online gaming brand awareness is simply for the benefit of gambling fans based in those countries.
The truth is that because most top draw UK and European football matches are beamed all over the world today, online gaming sports advertisers are seeking to create and grow brand awareness in other nations, and entice a whole new set of potential customers. Again, this makes perfect senses considering that online gambling is becoming so universal.
But it is not all champagne and caviar in the world of online gambling sports sponsorships. While these sponsorships are not a problem in countries with legalised and regulated markets, they can be a big issue in countries where the popular internet activity is frowned upon. Case in point - Portugal.
A Portuguese court recently ordered Bwin.party Digital Entertainment, the biggest listed online gaming firm on Earth, to remove all of its advertising and sponsorship from national sports competitions that take place in Portugal, which is threatening the firm's main sponsorship deal of the prestigious Portuguese League Cup (Ta da Liga).
Local Licensing Laws Could Impact UK Sports Sponsorships
Similarly, the UK may also see its sports sponsorships by online gambling brands affected if a new local online gaming licensing regime - which is under review - is adopted. Currently any online gambling firm licensed in Europe can operate and advertise in the UK. But if the new local licensing laws come into effect in the next few years, only gaming firms licensed in the UK would be able to operate in the UK and thus advertise in the UK.
That could potentially mean less sports sponsorships overall, and due to the currently very high UK online gambling tax rate, even firms with UK licenses would have less money to spend on sports sponsorships, which could have a large impact on teams, and the respective sports in general.
So it will be interesting to see where sports sponsorships in the UK go in the next few years. Here are the top 10 gambling sports sponsorships in the world (Source: Sports Sponsorship and Online Gaming Sector White Paper - Matthew Glendinning, Editor, Sports Marketing Frontiers):
Top 10 Gambling Sports Sponsorships
| Sponsor | Team/Sport | Year | Value |
| Sport's Toto | Turkish Süper Lig | 2010 to 2015 | $125 million |
| Bwin | Real Madrid | 2010 to 2013 | $80.4 million |
| Bwin | AC Milan | 2006 to 2010 | $64.3 million |
| Mansion | Tottenham Hotspur | 2006 to 2010 | $53 million |
| Betclic | Juventus | 2010 to 2012 | $21.4 million |
| Genting | Aston Villa | 2011 to 2013 | $16 million |
| Vriendenloterij | Eredivisie | 2011 to 2014 | $10 million |
| Bwin | MotoGP | 2012 to 2013 | $5 to $10 million |
| Mansion | Manchester City | 2011 to 2013 | $8.4 million |
| 12Bet | Sevilla | 2009 to 2011 | $8 million |