Asian Sports Company, KOK Sports has entered into an agreement with Real Madrid that will see the Asian firm become the new official regional sponsor for the betting sector in Asia commencing from the 2020/21 season and replacing China-facing operator brand ManBetX.
The agreement signed by the parties will run for the following three seasons (2020/21, 2021/22 and 2022/23. Real Madrid and KOK Sports, a leader in the entertainment industry, will work together to develop unique content and interactive experiences for all Asia-based Real Madrid fans.
This new agreement follows a recent update on the advertising restrictions for operators in Spain. The Spanish government has imposed several increasingly restrictive rules upon the gambling sector, in particular with reference to advertising.
In February of this year, draft regulation was published that saw gambling advertising being compared to tobacco products, with the introduction of new restrictions which included TV and radio advertising being permitted only between 1am and 5 am, although concessions were made at that time for advertising around live sports broadcasts which was to be permitted for events kicking off before 8 pm and 5 am.
The content of operators’ promotions was also criticized with direct inducements to gamble such as ‘play now’ or ‘bet now’ being banned outright, as no information on live odds was permitted to be shred in adverts around live sports events.
Spanish sports teams are currently not permitted to display gambling operator branding on their team shirts, and operators will also be banned from purchasing naming rights to stadiums, competitions or event spaces.