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UK – Ladbrokes strikes deal with The FA

The FA has announced a long-term agreement with Ladbrokes to become its new official betting partner.

The deal, commencing on August 1 2016, will see the leading bookmakers’ relationship with The FA span the England team and The Emirates FA Cup. With more than 800m followers globally, England are the most supported team in the World and completed their preparations for Euro 2016 with a sell-out match against Portugal at Wembley last night. The Emirates FA Cup has similarly enjoyed a stellar year with matches broadcast in over 175 countries and a UK audience of 10m+ tuning in for the showpiece final that witnessed Manchester United emerge victorious.

Under the terms of the agreement, Ladbrokes will benefit from premium brand exposure alongside England senior men’s matches, and ties across all rounds of The Emirates FA Cup. Also included within the partnership are in-stadia betting rights for Wembley Stadium, enabling Ladbrokes to engage with both their current audience, and drive new customer acquisition around showpiece events held at the stadium.

Martin Glenn, Chief Executive of The FA, said: “This partnership with Ladbrokes comes at a time when The FA, as not-for-profit organisation, is investing record levels back into football at all levels of the game. Ladbrokes join an outstanding portfolio of official FA partners, providing support across the England team, and the most famous cup competition in the world, The Emirates FA Cup. We are delighted to welcome them on board.”

Ladbrokes CEO, Jim Mullen said: “Football is the holy grail of sporting sponsorship opportunities. We are absolutely delighted to have secured exclusive rights that will see Ladbrokes at the beating heart of the beautiful game. When I became CEO last year I announced that the Ladbrokes organic growth plan would require us to ramp up our marketing spend in those places where we know our customers are engaged. Being at the heart of football in this country is precisely what I had in mind. We’re keen to invest where we know we can make a difference and this deal further strengthens the sporting passion that is evident throughout Ladbrokes.”

Kristof Fahy CMO said: “As official partner, we want to be much more than a company which hands over a cheque, sits back and hopes for the best. As the best known brand in bookmaking, we have the passion and drive to ensure our customers and football fans alike can immerse themselves in all that makes English football so brilliant.”