English Football League Championship side Middlesbrough has extended their contract with the UK betting firm Coral, moving against the decision by the Football Association to sever all ties with gambling companies.
The English Football League (EFL) Championship side Middlesbrough has extended their deal with the UK gambling giant, Coral, this week.
The partnership continues for a further three-years, allowing the online gambling outfit to offer Middlesbrough fans betting services at The Riverside Stadium, with the ability to collect winning bets at any Coral retail outlet in the country.
The Coral brand will feature on the club’s website, throughout their social media channels, and in a full capacity on match days, including ads in the game day program, on the giant screen, and other branding opportunities.
Middlesbrough fell through the Premier League trap door last year after winning only five games, scoring only 27 goals, prompting The Daily Mail to question whether they were the most boring side to ever appear in the Premier League?
Aitor Karanka lost his job. Garry Monk took over the helm in June, but hopes for an immediate return to the big time hit a speed bump after they lost their opening league game to Wolves by a goal to nil.
Coral PR Director, Simon Clare, said his firm was looking forward to supporting Boro in their mission to return to the Premier League.
It seems the decision by the Football Association (FA) to sever ties with gambling firms has not been supported by the teams they represent. The FA ended their relationship with Ladbrokes in June and vowed to do a Pontius Pilate with gambling companies. The FA came under fire for handing down fines and suspensions to players who violated gambling laws while continuing to milk sponsorship deals with gambling agents.
FA rules expressly forbid players to bet on any football matches.
In April, the FA banned Burnley midfielder, Joey Barton, for 18-months, and fined him £30,000, for placing 1,260 bets on football games throughout a 10-year period beginning March 2006.
It was after the Barton sentencing that the FA began a three-month review that ended with the decision to terminate their £4m a year deal with Ladbrokes.
Nine gambling companies have shirt sponsorship deals with Premier League clubs, injecting £47.3m into the most profitable league in the world.
