It’s fair to say that sport and gambling go hand in hand these days. And they appear to be a match made in heaven.
From fans playing everything from betting to even slots on the terraces at half time, to the multimillion pound deals on sport sponsors and official partners, it’s ingrained in our culture, both on the pitch and off it.
It perhaps comes as no real surprise. The rise of online casino and betting in the UK is huge. We’re regularly seeing new and exciting names hit the market, with the likes of Vegas Spins welcoming new customers by the day.
That’s increasing further thanks to technology, and what better way to promote online casinos and bookmakers than via the biggest sport on the planet and a target audience of millions.
That’s exactly why we see half of the Premier League and 17 out of 24 Championship clubs, including Wigan, enjoying sponsorship from betting brands on their shirt.
It’s no surprise to see DW take a step aside for the lucrative world of online betting brands, and in reality a life without them could be disastrous for clubs financially.
While television rights form a major part of funding in top leagues globally, so does advertising from betting brands, to the point where betting brands are even sponsoring non-league divisions. It’s vital funding.
Ultimately, the adverts for betting are significantly contributing to the reason in which channels find it so lucrative. Football without gambling simply wouldn’t be the same, and perhaps vice versa to the same degree.
According to reports, hundreds of millions of pounds are taken by clubs from betting firms. As deals get more inventive and more lucrative, with Manchester United to set the tone once again in their newest deal, that will undoubtedly continue.
Serie A has taken the interesting step to ban betting companies as sponsors, and that could well have a knock-on effect. It’s likely we’ll see that over the next five years rather than immediately and it’ll be interesting to watch how significantly the likes of Juventus, the Milan sides and Roma are impacted in the Champions League.
For Wigan, they will certainly be benefiting from their new shirt sponsor. There’s more money in betting companies as sponsors, and that is going to be the case for some time to come. It’s really no wonder club’s are snapping their hand off!
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