Monday, December 11, 2006

It's been a tough year for online gambling to say the least and now the
British Gambling Commission is investigating the legality of shirt
sponsorship deals for English Premier League football clubs. All bets could
be off for companies such as Mansion and 888 Holdings to continue sponsoring
Premiership clubs like Spurs and Middlesbrough. There are four premier
league teams sponsored by online gambling companies: Aston Villa, who have a
two-year deal with 32Red; Blackburn, who along with Leeds United are
sponsored by Bet24; Tottenham, whose deal with Mansion was worth over $84
million; and Middlesbrough, who are in the final year of a big contract with
888. The concern raised by the British Minister of sports is that children
are exposed to this advertising as many of them purchase the kit of their
favorite team. Naturally these shirts are branded with online gambling
logos. Earlier this year France arrested two executives of the Austrian
sports betting giant BWin when they gave a press conference to announce a
similar sponsorship deal with Monaco, one of the largest football clubs in
the country. One cannot help but feel that this is a petty response based on
specious logic. Billboards which can be seen throughout every football game
played around the world frequently show products that are unsuitable or
illegal for children. Children watch these games on television so why should
companies promoting alcohol consumption be allowed advertising space? Double
standards are once again being applied to the online gambling industry, but
hey, there's nothing new with that - it's becoming a global epidemic in
2006.