SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
The feature race of the Cheltenham Open meeting is to be known as the BetVictor Gold Cup, after the firm took over the sponsorship lost by Paddy Power due to the authorised betting partner row.
The race has been sponsored by Paddy Power since 2003, but the bookmaker has not signed up for ABP status and is therefore unable to sign commercial arrangements with the group which runs Cheltenham. BetVictor, meanwhile, became an authorised betting partner on February 19.
As reported in the Racing Post, BetVictor will take over the running of the betting shop in the Sovereign bar area of the main grandstand at Cheltenham with immediate effect. BetVictor will also sponsor the BetVictor blimp which provides Channel 4 viewers with aerial coverage of the action.
Ian Renton, Regional Director of Jockey Club Racecourses south west, said: “We are delighted to welcome BetVictor to the sponsorship portfolio at Cheltenham.
“The BetVictor Gold Cup is one of the leading races staged outside of the festival on what is one of the biggest race days at Cheltenham, with a crowd of over 35,000 attending.
“With the new partnership also including a BetVictor betting shop in the Sovereign bar and the branding of the high-profile Channel 4 blimp at the festival next week, we think this is a great example of how British racing can work with authorised betting partners for the benefit of all parties.”
Andreas Meinrad, Chief Executive for BetVictor, said: “As part of our ongoing commitment to British racing we are delighted to announce a number of commercial initiatives with Cheltenham during 2016 and beyond.
“As an authorised betting partner, we are delighted that these opportunities have become available and are very positive that punters will see the benefits of supporting bookmakers who back British racing.”
