Marketing

Stephen van Rooyen, the Chief Executive of Sky UK & Ireland, has written a personal letter to The Times, stating that the industry’s planned ‘whistle-to-whistle ban on gambling/betting advertising’ during sports broadcasts will have minimal impact as a gambling-prevention measure or safeguard. This week, UK gambling stakeholders await the full publication of a new mandatory advertising/marketing code, agreed-on by members …

Online bookmaker Betway continues to expand its racing sponsorship portfolio confirming that it will sponsor this weekend’s Aintree ‘Many Clouds Chase’ and ‘Grand Sefton Handicap’ fixtures. The betting group has been a principal sponsor at the Merseyside track since signing a deal to sponsor the Grand National meeting starting in 2017, and the latest agreement will see Betway take on two …

The M&A scene has come to US gambling publishing, as USBets confirms that it has moved to acquire competitor Sports Handle (SportsHandle.com). The undisclosed sum transaction, sees USBets expand its gambling resources network with Sports Handle added to its publishing portfolio which includes leading state-specific portals NJ Online Gambling and PennBets (Pennsylvania). In its acquisition notice, USBets confirms that Sports Handle …

For the first time in its thirty-year history, the William Hill ‘Sports Book of the Year’ award (SBOTY) will be shared by two authors. Yesterday at BAFTA London, William Hill’s judging panel could not separate Tom Gregory’s glorious debut work ‘A Boy in the Water’ from boxing journalist Paul D Gibson’s brutal ‘The Lost Soul of Eamonn Magee’ as SBOTY …

UK & IRE online sports betting group Argyll Entertainment has moved to rebrand its REDZONESPORTS.BET property to coincide with December’s climax of the NFL’s regular season. Entering a crucial trading period, Argyll simplifies its US sports betting asset to Redzone.bet, which is further supported by the new strapline of ‘just check our prices’. The rebrand follows this November’s upgrade of …

Professional darts association the PDC, has confirmed Betfred as the ‘official title sponsor’ for its ‘PDC World Matchplay’ tournament. Held every July at the Winter Gardens in Blackpool (Lancashire), the World Matchplay tournament is the PDC’s second longest running pro darts event (first staged 1994) Confirming Betfred as title sponsor for the next three years, the PDC states that from …

Ladbrokes has been confirmed as the new title sponsor for multiple PDC tournaments including this weekend’s much anticipated Players Championship Finals. The newly formed deal means the operator becomes the primary sponsor of the Masters and UK Open from next year, capitalising on the opportunity presented with the Coral brand picking up the sponsorship of the UK Open. Barry Hearn …

Camelot has been wrapped by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) after the UK lottery operator placed a scratchcard outside the entrance of a school. The ad in question featured an image of a rainbow scratch card with the text “Scratch and See … Top prize £50,000 Lucky Fortune … 7 CHANCES TO WIN! £2”. Issuing its response, Camelot outlined that …