bwin confirms Man Utd deal
Three-year agreement sees operator named as official gaming and betting partner of Premier League club.
eGaming Review Power 50 operator bwin.party has agreed a deal which will see its bwin brand become the official betting partner of English football club Manchester United.
The three-year agreement sees bwin replace Betfair after the exchange operator saw its own deal of the same duration come to a close this summer.
Bwin has an existing shirt sponsorship deal with Spanish champions Real Madrid and a partnership with UEFA Champions League finalists Bayern Munich with today’s contract with the 19-time English Premier League title-winners integrating the operator’s odds into its official website.
The football club, second-favourites behind fierce rivals Manchester City to win the league in the 2012-13 season which begins this weekend, floated on the New York Stock Exchange last week after raising more than US$230m at its initial public offering.
Citing the impact of football on bwin.party’s figures, with the sport contributing “approximately half” of the London-listed company’s 261m sports betting revenues in 2011, the operator’s co-CEO Norbert Teufelberger said “Manchester United is one of the biggest names in world sport with a global fan base running into hundreds of millions. We share a passion for football that has always been at the heart of our long term brand development strategy.”
Teufelberger also described the agreement as “Complement[ing] our recent move into social gaming”. Bwin.party entered the social sector in earnest with its acquisition of selected assets of Ukraine-based developer Orneon in May, setting up its own development studio Win Interactive which will be headed up by former Mytopia CEO Barak Rabinowitz.
“Man Utd has 569 million followers outside of Europe, providing us with a great opportunity to offer jointly designed and innovative products in countries that do not yet allow real money online sports betting,” Teufelberger said.
Manchester United commercial director Richard Arnold said of the deal “Like Manchester United, bwin is a leader in its market. It offers an enhanced betting experience with engaging content, utilising the latest technologies and bringing something new to the UK market.
“This, along with the company’s knowledge of football, is why we chose to align ourselves with bwin and we are looking forward to a successful partnership,” he added.
The deal marks the latest partnership between a Premier League club and a leading egaming operator, with United’s rivals Manchester City signing up Paddy Power as its first ever UK and Ireland betting partner in February this year, while Mansion.com retains its global betting partnership with the football club.
Other clubs have recently agreed shirt sponsorship deals with egaming companies, with Wigan’s deal with 12Bet and Swansea City’s with 32Red among those active for the coming season.