Villa Seals £40m Betano Deal
Aston Villa has signed a two-year £40m main shirt sponsorship agreement with Betano, according to multiple reports.
The online betting firm will replace BK8 as the Premier League club’s main sponsor from the 2024/25 season. That will see Villa cut ties with the Asia-based gambling brand after just one season, despite agreeing a multi-year deal ahead of the current campaign.
If accurate, Betano’s reported fee of £20m a year will make this the most lucrative partnership in the club’s history. The current BK8 deal is believed to be worth £12m annually, which is double the previous Cazoo agreement that was reportedly worth £6m per year.
The uptick in sponsorship revenue will help Aston Villa to comply with the Premier League’s Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR), after the club recently revealed a loss of £119.6m for 2022/23 last month.
That figure is greater than the PSR’s permitted loss limit of £105m over a three-year period. However, Villa were able to offset this due to investments into women’s football development, as well as the club’s charity foundation, academy and infrastructure.
In order to adhere to PSR regulations, the Birmingham-based club also reportedly struck a multi-year Adidas partnership in January, which will see the German sportswear giant take over from Castore from the 2024/25 campaign.
When first announced last June, the BK8 deal met opposition from fans over the team’s association with a betting company. A statement released by the Aston Villa Supporters’ Trust at the time said the club had ‘failed to listen to the legitimate concerns of fans about the role of gambling sponsorship in sport.’
Prior to the Villa deal, BK8 had a previous agreement with EFL Championship club Norwich City cancelled after supporters criticised the brand’s sexualised online marketing campaign.
Currently placed fourth in the Premier League table, Villa will aim to secure qualification for next year’s UEFA Champions League, which would help drive further commercial revenue growth.
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