Euro Online Casino

Football - soccer to non Europeans - as you know is the most popular sport in the world. It attracts enormous amounts of sponsorship from miscellaneous organizations. Online casino gambling operators also contend for an opportunity to promote their brands by sponsoring football teams and events. However, the approach of certain European countries with regard to online gambling is proving to be more of an annoyance for some operators.

An ironical situation has surfaced for the French football club Olympique Lyonnais, which has been sponsored by Betclic. In a Champion’s League game to be played in Madrid, Olympique Lyonnais, has been forbidden from sporting the Betclic log on its shirts. Its rivals are Real Madrid who will be displaying the Logo of Bwin, a major opponent of Betclic. While Spain allows private online gambling operators to sponsor football teams, Real Madrid has no problem, but France does not do so!

The irony is that the UEFA which is the governing body of football in Europe, had given Olympique Lyonnais the green signal to display the Betclic logo on away matches outside France, till the end of 2009. It was anticipated that the French legalization of online gambling would be in place by the beginning of 2010 and Betclic would be licensed by the French Government to engage in Internet gambling in France. But the French legalization is yet to come through and because France says that the legalization is pending, UEFA is not restoring the permission. As a result both Olympique Lyonnais and Betclic have been left in a helpless situation.

A similar situation has also surfaced in Poland where Unibet, the Swedish online gaming operator had a running sponsorship agreement with the Polish Football Federation. Unibet was the official sponsor of the Polish second division football association. In January 2010, Poland’s new anti-online gambling law became effective. All forms of gambling, except those from land-based casinos are banned and gambling companies are forbidden from advertising their brands. This in effect means that Unibet cannot have its branding in the football stadiums and on the television screens. The development will come as a hammer blow to the association, its clubs and their supporters, who are now being deprived of their chance to earn the type of money required if Polish football, was to progress and salvage a sure footing in the global game.