by Renee Israel
The giant UK gambling operator, William Hill, has entered into a new
sponsorship deal that will see the group benefit greatly from new advertising
and hospitality rights.
Will Hill has become an Official Supporter of England and the FA Cup in an
arrangement that extends past the FA Cup and FIFA World Cup in 2014. This two
and a half year deal will ensure that William Hill benefits enormously from
advertising and hospitality rights, as well as the opportunity to employ the FA
Cup and England logos during the sponsorship period.
The press statement announcing the sponsorship deal did not mention the costs
involved.
Speaking about the William Hill's sponsorship of the FA Cup, the Chief
Executive Officer of the company, Ralph Topping said: "We have been looking for
sponsorship opportunities from which we can reward and engage with our customers
for the events they most enjoy."
"This deal with the FA will help us to achieve our objectives of developing
the prominence of our brand and increasing market share in all our business
channels."
Topping said that William Hill's status as 'Official Betting Partner of the
FA Cup', complements the group's existing partnership with the Scottish Football
Association and the Scottish Cup "with which we are extremely delighted".
He said that the new deal "becomes a welcome addition to our quality range of
sponsorships within darts, snooker and racing."
FA Cup Welcomes William Hill Sponsorship
The FA's head of sponsorship, Peter Daire welcomed William
Hill's partnership with the association and said: "We are delighted to have
William Hill on board. They have a strong track record in sports sponsorship and
a considerable online and high street presence that will enable us to strengthen
our communication platforms for England and the FA Cup."
He said that, in return, William Hill would benefit from an
association with two of the highest profile football sponsorship properties in
the world.
There was only one vacant spot left among the three sponsorship
packages set aside for England and the FA Cup, and William Hill has filled it.
The Chief Marketing Officer for the gambling company, Kristof
Fahy said: "This is an excellent deal for both parties and it gives us some very
good opportunities to develop our brand across a wide variety of channels. The
England and FA Cup branding and imagery will enable WilliamHill.com to promote
its services and products that we can offer to our casino, games, sports book,
bingo and poker customers."
