SBC News George Harborne: Betting Partnerships in the Premier League

George Harborne: Betting Partnerships in the Premier League

WBA-georgeharborneGeorge Harborne, Head of Partnerships at Premier League side West Bromwich Albion, discusses how the betting industry currently works alongside the country’s top football clubs.

As far as partnership categories go, betting is one which is a ‘sure thing’, with Premier League clubs deriving some form of income from advertisers in this industry.

However, despite the hefty investment from the industry in to the game, brands in betting tend to lose out compared to their non-betting counterparts in terms of exclusive designations.

Non-Exclusive Designations

Fans, brands and clubs alike have widely become accustomed to the various designations that now come along with the betting brands. Depending on the club you may find an ‘in-stadia betting partner’, ‘UK betting partner’, ‘European betting partner’, and ‘Asian betting partner’ to name the mainstream designations. Rights fees attributed to these designations would usually be enough to guarantee exclusive status within an industry, but not so in betting.

The demand for exposure from betting brands means that clubs find themselves in a position to be able to offer only regional exclusivity so that they can yield higher rights fees overall. If we say that a rough rights fee would be about £350,000, with clubs having the potential to populate two or three designations then the betting category could be worth anything between £500,000 and £750,000 but, in some cases, up to £1,000,000.

In addition to the above, betting is a unique category as it is also one whereby we see brands feature with multiple clubs. By having multiple club partnerships across the division it ensures that they have greater exposure. That said, this exposure comes at the cost of being shared with competitors. The use of multiple designations also makes it difficult for brands to develop any sort of meaningful relationship with a clubs fan base, although this is likely a secondary objective to media exposure.

Exclusivity

Global exclusivity in the category is relatively rare. If we consider that a club may yield the figures mentioned above from the category then brands need to make the decision whether to spend their money on one club with exclusivity or a few clubs but sharing the LED space.

westhamA top of the table club may look to secure somewhere in the region of £2,000,000 for an exclusive designation, whilst the next tier down could look to secure £1,000,000 for such rights. Naturally, clubs below this threshold are then financially better off to secure multiple partnerships to achieve £700,000+, rather than settle for an exclusive partnership and rights fee likely to be in the region of £500,000-600,000.

Whilst exclusivity would offer brands a greater opportunity to develop links with fans, over a multi year term, it is unlikely that the equity built with a specific set of supporters will offer as great a return on investment as the wider reach of the TV exposure gained from non-exclusive agreements. That said, not having to share your space with a competitor would have its distinct advantages.

Summary

Ultimately, and unfortunately in my view, it seemingly makes more sense for brands and clubs alike to secure multiple non-exclusive arrangements rather than single club/brand partnerships. The income that can be gained from securing multiple partners for clubs is greater and the value brands can derive from regional designations over a global one is greater too.

I would welcome the shift to globally exclusive agreements between a club and one brand if the right balance on rights fee and exposure from a rights package could be achieved, and ultimately both parties could be a winner in this scenario. Time will tell.

George Harborne is currently Head of Partnerships at English Premier League football club West Bromwich Albion. To contact George please email [email protected].

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