In the UK we have some of the biggest and best sporting leagues and competitions in the world. We also have a large number of people who enjoy placing bets on sport, most as a hobby and a small few who do it professionally.
The two together have given us what we have today, which is a huge relationship between sport in the UK and the gambling industry. Sports teams and players are very influential, so bookmakers want to be seen alongside them.
Whether this is sponsorship of teams and events, increased exposure or something else, the two are working together to help each other improve. While this continues to be the case, it is expected that they will only work even more closely together in the near future.
Sponsorship Deals Between Bookmakers and Sport Teams & Events
These deals work both ways. The sports teams and events get vital money to help them survive from the bookmakers, who pay them for exposure.
The bookmakers get the exposure they need to grow their brand and attract new customers. There are many different types of betting offers that new players can use to place bets when they sign up with a bookmaker. By sponsoring sports, bookmakers are putting their name in front of potential customers, and if the game is on TV then millions of people could see this.
Those who watch sport are the typical type of customer that would sign up with a bookmaker, so the sponsorship deals are putting products in front of exactly the right people.
Events sponsored by bookmakers are able to pay good prize money that attracts the best players in the world thanks to the injection of cash from bookmakers. At a team level, big sponsors can be the difference between survival and not for some clubs, bookmakers are key to this.
Increased Exposure for Smaller Sports
When it comes to smaller sports that need help with exposure, betting can certainly help with that. Many bookmakers offer a live betting section on their site which includes live streaming of certain events.
This means that a smaller sport that hasn’t got a big TV deal to show the world what it can do, can still get some kind of exposure through betting sites. Those who bet in play will favour action they can watch, so if a sport can be live streamed then new fans are going to potentially be attracted.
If a sport wants to grow, it needs exposure. In some instances, the reverse of what happens above can happen, so bookmakers give sports the exposure they need to thrive.
This is another example of UK sport and the betting industry working hand in hand and helping each other out, and a big reason why this relationship is likely to last for many years.
What Does the Future Hold?
If anything, there is only one way that this relationship is heading and that is upwards. Both are receiving a benefit from the relationship, the bookmakers are getting more customers and sports are either receiving sponsorship money or exposure, depending on their size.
With a huge range of betting markets, many sports covered and new additions such as betting via a mobile betting app and live betting, there is a lot for the sports betting industry to showcase.
Those watching sport are their prime audience, the people they want to get in front of, and for that reason they are going to push to keep things together. Watch out for more bookmaker sponsored events, shirt sponsorship and anything else that can continue to put brands in front of their target customers.
