In the past decade, football has garnered billions of fans worldwide. Being an effective platform to promote businesses, it has also attracted the attention of online casinos. The impact of advertising cannot be overlooked, but there are two sides of the coin.
While the major sponsors of football teams were tobacco and alcohol firms, now gambling companies have occupied that space. This was largely due to a lot of uproar from fans, communities, and governments about football promoting alcohol and tobacco firms, forcing football clubs to seek sponsorship from gambling firms. For years, commercials in football have been used as a marketing tool for the best online casinos to enhance their sales, brand image, and market share.
A good example is free play online casinos such as online spielautomaten echtgeld, which offer online casinos no deposit bonus to attract more players. Despite putting their best efforts, it’s still not enough to grow their business exponentially. As a result, they have turned to football companies to reach a wider audience. In this article, we will look at the risks advertisements pose to individuals (millennials included). We’re also going to find out whether there’s a need to rethink the relationship between football and gambling. Without further ado, let’s dive in.
The fact that fans don’t mind new online casinos commercials in football has pushed many, if not all, online casinos to advertising as much as they can. There’s no denying that both gambling companies and football clubs benefit immensely from each other. From a commercial standpoint, gambling firms invest millions and even billions in clubs in exchange for a platform to reach out to their target audience on a global scale and boost their businesses.
On the other hand, football clubs need the huge financial backing of casinos to thrive and remain on top. Financial resources help to support not only individual players but also local communities. The significant amount of cash also aids in building or maintaining modern stadiums and improving training facilities.
In addition to sponsorships that are seen on shirts, gambling firms also sponsor commercials on the sides of stadiums. It injects some-much needed funds to football teams, without which they would experience untold financial constraints. On the part of the sponsors, ads raise the trust in the gambling firms and their services. Considering all this, let’s look at the pros and cons of commercials for casinos in football.
Here are the cons of the gambling industry sponsoring football clubs:
The presence of gambling commercials in football may cause some fans to constantly think about gambling, engage in the activity, and as a result, become addicted to it. According to some studies, continuous ads have caused some people to develop gambling issues. Although the majority of football fans state that the partnership of gambling companies and firms hasn’t influenced them in any way, many others have been affected. The problem is further escalated by the fact that gambling isn’t restricted to brick and mortar — it’s readily available on mobile online casinos, too.
Gambling advertisements have raised mixed reactions. There’s a belief that their sponsorship implies that gambling is safe, normal, and linked with watching one of the world’s most favorite sports. There is also the perception that fans may associate successful players with gambling firms, and therefore see nothing wrong with engaging in gambling at any time.
While parents and guardians might try to restrict underage kids from accessing gambling sites, it’s impossible to stop them completely. Underage kids are also ardent football fans, and most of them look up to their favorite players. With gambling commercials all over football pitches, minors are left with the impression that football is synonymous with gambling. This has, unfortunately, encouraged many teens to gamble.
The following are some of the pros of gambling sponsors in football:
Is there really a middle ground, and should one party be blamed more than the other? The only thing clubs are guilty of is selling their advertising space to the highest bidder, in this case, the gambling firms, and it wouldn’t be a smart move to turn them down.
It’s not surprising that many gambling companies have the financial capability to enable sponsorship on that level. The online casino industry rakes in billions of dollars annually, globally, and rising exponentially. As a testament to that, brand new online casinos that began with only a single online slot now have live casinos and full betting slots and continue to expand.
The concern regarding the amount of visibility afforded to gambling firms goes beyond adults with gambling problems. It also extends to the exposure level of kids and young teenagers. Despite how the industry is seen in many quarters, more reputable, top online casinos have actually funded counseling for gambling addiction.
There’s no denying that gambling sponsors, including casinos online, invest a lot of money in the football industry. And this has gone a long way in keeping the clubs afloat, besides bringing in more business for gambling institutions. The truth is, ads for online casinos in football comes with so much debate. And when all is said and done, if these issues aren’t properly addressed, they’ll no doubt lead to more significant problems. What is your experience with online casino adverts in football? Please share your story with us.
Thomas Glare writes about college football and other sports. He played multiple roles in his previous job as a sports producer, managed social media accounts, made reports and oversaw nightly production on schedule.