Gambling Firms Offer Boost For Premier League Clubs

Seven Premier League clubs now have shirts sponsored by firms from the gambling industry.

Many Premier League football clubs would have "serious problems" without the emergence of online gambling firms willing to make shirt sponsorship deals, an industry analyst has claimed.

Andreas Ullmann, head of market intelligence at Sport+Markt, told the Financial Times that the combined value of sponsorship deals in English football's top tier dropped from £69.2 million to £68.2 million last year, following many seasons of continuous growth.

Several teams have been struggling to attract new sponsors as the recession continues to bite, but the growing presence of sports betting firms in the market has given clubs one reason for optimism, according to Mr Ullmann.

He told the newspaper: "It has become a bit more of a buyer's market in the UK, as we can see from the new deals that some teams have struck with online betting companies.

"Without them many clubs would have serious problems."

Last weekend's opening round of Premier League fixtures saw seven clubs unveil match shirts sponsored by gambling firms for the 2009-10 season.

Both Bolton Wanderers and Wigan Athletic recently signed deals with 188Bet, while newly-promoted Wolverhampton Wanderers are sponsored by Sportingbet.com.