BK8 seals deal with 5 LaLiga clubs

BK8 will become official Asian betting partner of Athletic Bilbao, Elche CF, RCD Mallorca, Valencia CF and Villarreal CF.

Spain.- BK8 has signed a deal to become the official Asian betting partner for five clubs in Spain’s top football league, LaLiga. The deal covers Athletic Bilbao, Elche CF, RCD Mallorca, Valencia CF and Villarreal CF for the 2021/22 season.

BK8 will receive branding exposure on the teams’ digital and social media channels in Asian markets, region-focused virtual perimeter advertising rights, and promotional activities with players.

Michael Gatt, BK8’s MD for Europe, said: “These new deals are really exciting for BK8 and represent a huge marker for us as a brand in being able to begin to achieve some of our objectives in working closely with football-related partnerships.

“We are working with a number of football stakeholders across Europe at this moment in time, so we can continue on this positive trajectory and help us invest with not just clubs but also charities and the community who share our ambition to make a difference in football. 

“This partnership with some of Spain’s elite football institutions puts us on the map in Europe and we look forward to a successful relationship with them all.”

Anil Murthy, Valencia CF president, said: “VCF is a global brand and Asia is an important market for us. We hope that with this agreement with BK8, our presence in Asia will continue to grow.”

BK8 named ex-Chelsea and England captain John Terry as a brand ambassador in November 2019, but its deal with Norwich City FC was terminated after fans complained about sexually provocative social media marketing campaigns.

Earlier this week, Alberto Garzón, Spain’s minister for consumer affairs, warned gambling operators to expect more changes to regulations in order to raise consumer protection standards.

Garzon, who was instrumental in developing Spain’s tough restrictions on gambling advertising passed in November, said he had the ministerial duty to centralise the governance of gambling law across Spain’s 17 autonomous communities.