Betclic, the online sports betting company, has secured title sponsorship rights to soccer’s top-tier Liga Portugal in a four-year deal brokered by global sports and entertainment agency IMG.
The tie-up, which starts with the upcoming 2023-24 season, will see the league commercially renamed Liga Portugal Betclic, and the pair will also collaborate on various corporate social responsibility projects through the Liga Foundation.
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Along with title and branding rights, Betclic will also gain IP, digital communications, marketing, and content generation opportunities.
Ricardo Domingues, head of international markets at Betclic, said: “It is with great pride, and mainly with the sense of responsibility that being market leaders demands of us, that Betclic assumes its sponsorship of Liga Portugal – the main championship in the country, thus reaffirming our commitment to supporting football and national sport.
“We believe that the combination of the potential of both parties, aligned with a common desire to develop the competition and reinforce our values, are factors that bring us closer together with the purpose of continuing to serve people, fans, athletes, clubs, organizations, and sports agents – always for an increasingly better sport.”
Betclic replaces fellow international online betting operator Bwin, which held title sponsorship rights to the league for the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons but ended its deal early.
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By GlobalDataBwin's five-year agreement, struck ahead of the 2021-22 season was due to run through the 2025-26 season.
The 2023-24 Liga Portugal season is due to start on August 11 and will run until May 19, 2024.
Liga Portugal president Pedro Proença said: “It is a privilege for Liga Portugal to associate with a market-leading brand such as Betclic. This partnership unequivocally demonstrates the high level of professional football in Portugal.
“Brands like Betclic share our vision and, above all, our ambition for the growth of Portuguese professional football. We are proud that our top league will be called ‘Liga Portugal Betclic’ this season.”
The new deal comes a month after German sportswear brand Puma secured a match ball supply deal with the league from the 2023-24 campaign.
Pay-TV operator Sport TV is the domestic rightsholder of Liga Portugal and broadcasts the home matches of all clubs within the league with the exception of Benfica, whose games are shown by the club’s in-house cable and satellite channel BTV.
The broadcaster is also the league’s exclusive distributor of international media rights for the 2023-24 to 2025-26 seasons and, in February launched a tender process for interested networks.
Betclic, meanwhile, announced a new and exclusive partnership with the Ultimate Fighting Championship mixed martial arts promotion in France, Poland, and Portugal last month.
