Betway seals Manchester City sponsorship deal with a difference

The deal shows there are alternatives to shirt sponsorship.

UK.- Betway and Manchester City have announced a multi-year deal naming the operator as the defending Premier League champions’ global betting partner from the start of the 2024/25 season.

The deal could offer a glimpse of the future of Premier League agreements once it starts its ban on front-of-shirt gambling sponsorship. The agreement includes marketing activations and content creation, and Super Group’s Betway branding will feature in digital and in-stadia assets. But there will be no shirt sponsorship. Etihad Airways remains City’s front-of-shirt sponsor, and the OKX crypto platform is its sleeve sponsor.

Super Group CEO Neal Menashe commented: “We are absolutely delighted to become Manchester  City’s Official Global Betting Partner. This agreement cements our place in the top tier of Premier League partners, ensuring that our Betway brand reaches fans in all corners of the globe.”  

City Football Group CEO Ferran Soriano added: “We are pleased to announce Betway as our official global betting partner today. As a globally recognised brand, Betway has a strong pedigree and history of working with high-profile brands within the sports space and we’re excited to work together throughout the partnership.”

The Premier League is to implement a voluntary ban on front-of-shirt gambling sponsorship from the 2026-27 season. The League has also joined other sports bodies in signing a new code of conduct for gambling agreements. However, there has been no letup in shirt sponsorship deals so far. For the new season, over half of the clubs in the Premier League have a gambling brand on the front of their shirts. AFC Bournemouth is the latest case, announcing a deal with bj88.

Betway already has a longstanding deal with West Ham United. It also sponsors clubs in La Liga and the NBA.