Belgian Clubs Exploit Loophole to Keep Betting Sponsorships
Belgium’s top football clubs have devised creative strategies to bypass a newly implemented law restricting them from having betting companies as their primary sponsors.
LISTEN TO THIS ARTICLE:At the beginning of January, the stricter regulations on gambling sponsorships, set by Belgium's gambling commission, the Kansspelcommissie (KSC), officially came into effect.
The new measures allow sports clubs to partner with entities that do not directly offer games of chance but may still promote gambling brands through indirect means, like charitable foundations, fan associations, sports media outlets, and sports affiliate websites.
The regulations also dictate that logos of betting companies cannot be displayed on the front of players’ shirts and must be restricted to a maximum size of 75 cm².
When the rules were first unveiled in December, Belgian football clubs strongly opposed the decision, warning of significant revenue losses. Historically, betting companies have offered more lucrative sponsorship deals than those from other industries.
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To keep the cash from the betting sector flowing in, some clubs in the Jupiler Pro League, Belgium’s elite football division, have discovered loopholes to circumvent the new regulations. Club Brugge, for instance, has a sponsorship agreement with Unibet, and to comply with the new rules, the team has opted to display the "U-Expert" logo on the front of their jerseys.
The U-Expert app, which provides sports news is powered by Unibet and features multiple links within the app that redirects users to the betting site. Charleroi is also following a similar approach with the U-Expert branding.
Standard Liege is promoting Circus Daily on its jerseys, a website that serves as a gateway to the Circus betting site. Another club, Cercle Brugge displays Goalden Palace News on its kits. While the website appears to be a news outlet, it ultimately redirects users to a betting platform.
Antwerp's jerseys feature the AntwerpFirst foundation logo, a non-profit organization sponsored by BetFirst.
However, these tactics may not remain effective for much longer, as the KSC has launched an inquiry into their compliance with the country’s gambling regulations.
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