Ajax upgrades Lavazza to official sponsor until 2027

The Italian coffee brand Lavazza and Ajax have extended and intensified the existing collaboration. Lavazza has been Ajax’s Official Supplier since 2017 and is now Official Sponsor until 2027.

The coffee of the 127-year-old family business Lavazza is served at sports park De Toekomst as well as for relations and employees in the Johan Cruijff ArenA and at events.


The collaboration with catering supplier VHC Jongens, who has been associated with Ajax since 2009 , remains an essential part of the partnership with Lavazza.

Menno Geelen, commercial director of Ajax: “It is great to see that our collaboration has been extended and continues to grow. We will also see Lavazza more often from next season, including on our backdrop and in content. Moreover, we are very happy that we can continue to drink and serve Lavazza’s excellent coffee.”

Maayk de Poorter, general manager of Lavazza Nederland / Bluespresso BV: “Over the past five years, together with VHC Jongens, we have enjoyed bringing the culture of authentic Italian coffee to the attention at and through Ajax. Ajax has now grown enormously in Europe. We have grown and our Lavazza portfolio fits seamlessly with clubs such as Juventus and Liverpool, so we have extended and intensified our partnership with great pride and confidence.”

AC Milan adds Hally & Son to its fashion partnership list

AC Milan and Hally & Son have signed a new partnership as part of which the eyeglass brand will become the Club’s new Official Fashion Eyewear Partner.

Hally & Son’s sunglasses and eyeglasses are created for those who value aesthetics, quality and unique details in all aspects of life, showing that passion for beauty transcends all things.

Style and elegance, combined with innovation and passion, form the basis of this new partnership between AC Milan and Hally & Son. These two brands, thanks in no small part to these shared values, have set standards for excellence in their respective sectors and proudly represent Italy throughout the world.

Casper Stylsvig, Chief Revenue Officer of AC Milan said: “Today marks the beginning of a journey that unites two brands representing the Italian style abroad. We are proud to welcome Avm1959, and in particular, an iconic Italian brand such as Hally & Son, to the Rossoneri family.”

“AC Milan perfectly encapsulates a winning mentality and a continued drive towards innovation, making it the best export product of Italian football over the decades. The result of last season has shown, once again, how it is possible to reach the very top by restructuring the operating model. As a Milan native and a Milanista myself, I am extremely proud to associate Hally & Son with this extraordinary Club,” added Jacopo Romano, CEO of Avm 1959 SpA.

WTT signs 188BET as international betting partner

World Table Tennis (WTT) has named online gaming brand 188BET as the Official International Betting Partner of the inaugural WTT Champions event

WTT Champions, individual men’s and women’s events, are WTT’s premier events designed for the world’s best 32 players. Both these events will be held as a combined event from 18-23 July 2022 in Budapest as part of WTT European Summer Series, offering fans double the excitement.

“We are delighted to be partnering with 188BET,” commented Raphael Chen, WTT’s Head of Partnerships Sales in Asia-Pacific. “This is a partnership with several ‘firsts’ – the first WTT Champions event and WTT’s first online gaming partner. We look forward to a fruitful and innovative partnership with this reputable company.”

Nigel Singer, Managing Director of 188BET, commented, “We are pleased to be partnering with World Table Tennis in the upcoming WTT Champions European Summer Series. Being the industry first in Asia to be partnering with World Table Tennis, we look forward for a successful event for our Asia audiences.”

As the Official International Betting Partner, 188BET will benefit from advertising opportunities on the field of play and exclusive social media activations, such as the Match of the Day and Head to Head for the semi-finals and the finals.

Manchester City unveils a virtual experience for fans on Roblox

Manchester City has launched ‘Blue Moon’, a City themed experience on Roblox, which is now available for fans.

Created in collaboration with Karta, the experience follows the story of the club’s characters, Moonchester and Moonbeam, and features various activities, including a minigame and a virtual Man City store. Fans can also play and watch Moonball matches, complete quests to earn in-game rewards and interact with other City fans on Roblox.

In another first for the club and the Premier League Trophy, the first ever virtual stop on Manchester City’s Trophy Tour will take place inside the Blue Moon experience on Roblox tomorrow. For 48 hours, Cityzens can interact in a digital world with the Premier League Trophy, take pictures with the trophy, collect unique items and meet other fans.

Manchester City also will feature in the popular Goal Kick Simulator experience on the Roblox platform where fans can get a hold of limited-edition items for their avatars!

Nuria Tarre, Chief Marketing and Fan Experience Officer at CFG said: “Manchester City continues to embrace the latest technologies to enhance experiences for our fans across the globe – both physically and in the digital world, exploring new and exciting ways to engage and entertain our fanbase.

“Another first for the club, this collaboration aims to inspire the next generation of fans and we look forward to delivering this innovative new experience on Roblox and bring the Premier League Trophy into the metaverse.”

Roblox provides an exciting opportunity for Manchester City to bring fans closer to the club than ever before, with many exciting upgrades, updates and events set to arrive in the coming months.

Real Madrid switches to BMW from Audi

Real Madrid and BMW Spain have signed a collaborative agreement to jointly pursue initiatives in the domains of future mobility, sustainability and diversity.

The event took place in the boardroom at Real Madrid City and was chaired by Florentino Pérez and Manuel Terroba, Executive Chairman of BMW Group Spain and Portugal. This partnership reflects the united values and vision for the future of both institutions.

The Real Madrid men’s and women’s football and basketball first teams, together with their coaching staff, will be provided with 100% electric vehicles from BMW as a means of mobility (they will be able to choose from any of the current models: iX, i4, iX3, i7 or iX1). Both organisations will establish a collaboration centre for sustainability where, through regular working sessions together with other collaborators at the club, good practices will be shared with the aim of reaching a common learning process. This forum will also act as a source of inspiration for ideas aimed at promoting innovative projects that will make a positive impact on the environment and society at large.

The president of BMW Group Spain, Manuel Terroba, said: “Real Madrid not only represents the world’s leading sporting institution, but also an organisation in constant evolution, striving for excellence in its activities based on demand, talent, quality and leadership. It also has a firm commitment to sustainability, solidarity, diversity and a winning spirit. This makes the club the perfect partner to address the challenges of the present and the future. Both institutions will work together to promote these values and, above all, respect for the environment, which represents a long-standing commitment to sustainable mobility, given that in 2022, the BMW Group will be marking 50 years since it unveiled its first electric BMW”.

Another of the objectives of this partnership is to work on specific initiatives that contribute to the sustainable development of the new Santiago Bernabéu stadium. The NEXT Sustainability Trophy will also be launched. This will award participants’ innovation and sustainability projects with the aim of bringing visibility to all those initiatives that improve the environment.

Sportradar launches Athlete Wellbeing program to help athletes combat betting addiction

Sportradar Integrity Services, a unit of Sportradar (NASDAQ: SRAD) has launched Athlete Wellbeing, a global program developed for leagues and federations, teams, and collegiate governing bodies to help support athletes’ and reduce the potential impact of sports betting on their mental health.

The program will focus on prevention and education through a comprehensive curriculum including on-demand virtual sessions, pre-recorded webinars and in person workshops. Sportradar has partnered with industry leaders in the areas of sports betting addiction and athlete mental health including Kindbridge Behavioral Health, a mental health treatment provider focused on gambling and gaming disorders; Dr. Timothy Fong, the co-director of the UCLA Gambling Studies Program; and Brianne Doura-Schawohl, a recognized expert in harm prevention and responsible gambling. Additionally, Sportradar recently renewed its membership in the National Council on Problem Gambling (NCPG), the oldest organization in the US dedicated to preventing gambling addiction, with NCPG agreeing to advise on the development of the Athlete Wellbeing program.

Jim Brown, Head of Integrity Services and Athlete Wellbeing, North America, Sportradar said: “We believe that Sportradar has an important role in the greater sports ecosystem and a responsibility in helping our partners educate their athletes about the potential impact of sports betting and problem gambling on their mental health. As the global leader in providing integrity services, the launch of this program is a natural step in continuing to protect the integrity of sport for all.”

Keith S. Whyte, Executive Director, National Council on Problem Gambling said: “We applaud Sportradar for creating their Athlete Wellbeing program to help protect athletes’ mental health, and we strongly support these efforts. As legalized sports betting expands across the country it is more important than ever to ensure gambling addiction prevention and education programs are in place for every league, sport, club, team and school.”

Sportradar Integrity Services has a long history of being at the forefront of providing innovative offerings and solutions to the marketplace that address new or emerging issues. The Athlete Wellbeing program fits seamlessly within the unit’s overall strategy of protecting the integrity of sports competitions and supporting stakeholders within the ecosystem.

Liverpool FC extends Standard Chartered deal for $59.2m annually

Liverpool Football Club and Standard Chartered Bank have extended their partnership for a further four years.

This will take the partnership to 17 seasons overall, until the end of the 2026-27 football season.

Standard Chartered started as Liverpool FC’s main team sponsor in July 2010, when the bank became only the fifth company ever to adorn the Reds’ first-team strip.

This agreement also includes sponsorship of LFC Women, as they return to the Women’s Super League, and aims to increase participation in the women’s game.

Billy Hogan, chief executive officer of LFC, said: “This is a hugely significant partnership for LFC and I could not be prouder to confirm a four-year extension to our already long and successful partnership with Standard Chartered.

“We have been on an incredible journey together and Standard Chartered’s support has been a key driver in our most recent successes, both on and off the pitch, with their loyalty and commitment to Liverpool Football Club.

“Our partnership has been able to thrive because of our shared values and we look forward to continuing to work together to help and support our communities and supporters around the world.”

Bill Winters, group chief executive at Standard Chartered, said: “When we partnered with Liverpool FC in 2010 we could not have imagined the success of both the partnership and of the club.

“Liverpool FC has been a true partner and, as one of the world’s best-known football clubs, we are proud to be associated with them. We are delighted to be continuing our partnership for the next four years and look forward to building on our already successful relationship.”

For a decade, Standard Chartered and Liverpool FC have used their partnership to support a number of the bank’s sustainability and community investment programmes. Together, they have raised more than £500,000 to tackle avoidable blindness and help young people, especially girls, learn new skills.

The bank has also worked closely with LFC Foundation to empower young adults through its Futuremakers initiative and has provided hundreds of matchday tickets to local residents to cheer on the Reds.

Sky bolsters offerings as part of deal extension with ECB

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and Sky Sports have inked an extension of their strategic partnership which will see more live cricket on Sky Sports, more on free-to-air TV and further increased investment to help grow the game.

The four-year extension, which represents an increase in investment on the previous agreement, runs from the start of 2025 until the end of 2028, and includes:

  • 90 extra hours of live cricket guaranteed on TV each year.
  • More women’s cricket than ever before.
  • Coverage of The Hundred extended to 2028.
  • Increased prominence for the Vitality Blast, including more live games.
  • Continued investment in grassroots cricket including through the Dynamos Cricket programme. Sky’s investment also funds initiatives for children of all backgrounds to pick up a bat and ball, growing women and girls’ cricket and reducing barriers to participation, as well as supporting a thriving domestic game and successful England teams.

The new agreement extends the partnership between the ECB and Sky Sports to more than 30 years and covers home international and domestic cricket. The current five-year deal, which started in 2020, has seen huge growth in cricket viewing on Sky Sports, with the recent Men’s Test series against New Zealand and the 2020 series against the West Indies being the two most watched series on record, outside of the 2019 Ashes. It also saw live cricket back on free-to-air TV and enabled the ECB and counties to provide fans with digital content and match streaming.

Overall, 134m more hours of ECB cricket were watched in 2021 compared to 2017, while a new high of 14 million people played, attended or followed cricket in 2021 – an increase of three million since 2019. Sky Sports has also played a key part in the development of The Hundred, working hand-in-hand with the ECB to engage millions of people in cricket for the first time last year – many of whom, broadcast data now shows, have gone on to sample other forms of the game.

Investment from Sky, whose coverage has led to 17 major broadcast industry awards including 3 BAFTAs, has also been vital in allowing for professional contracts for domestic women’s cricket for the first time, supporting grassroots initiatives to make cricket more inclusive, ensuring the financial survival of the game through the pandemic and enabling successful England teams. It has been critical to many improvements in playing standards over the years, from the introduction of central contracts for both men’s and women’s players to putting in place the right support set-ups to build winning teams.

As part of the partnership extension, for the first time England Women’s cricket will have a defined commitment, including two free-to-air IT20s. This represents a step forward in the commercialisation of women’s cricket and laying the foundation for future growth of the game.

The partnership will provide a greater profile for Vitality Blast than ever before, with at least 50% more group games being broadcast each season and one game per round being live-streamed for free on Sky Sports Cricket YouTube. There will also be rights for counties to stream every group game on their own platforms and a brand-new weekly highlights show to be broadcast on terrestrial television.

The deal also extends coverage of The Hundred until 2028, with a minimum of eight women’s matches confirmed to be shown on terrestrial TV, up from a minimum two in the previous agreement.

Announcing the extension, Clare Connor, ECB Interim Chief Executive Officer, said: “Sky have been fantastic partners for cricket for over 30 years. Their broadcast coverage is rightly lauded as the best in the world, but more significantly than that we have a shared commitment to growing the sport and investing in more opportunities not only for people to watch and follow cricket in all its forms, but also to pick up a bat and ball.

“We have worked closely with the wider game and our First-Class Counties to agree this new deal with Sky, which will see not only more live women’s and men’s cricket on Sky, but also more on free to air TV as well. I would like to place on record our thanks to the First Class County Chairs, to all of the Sky teams involved and to ECB colleagues including Tony Singh and Tom Harrison, who have played the central role in delivering this outstanding result for cricket.

“Our shared values and vision with Sky will make cricket accessible to even more people over the coming years and will use the power of sport to inspire the next generation, while safeguarding the wonderful traditions which are such a key part of our game.”

Stephen van Rooyen, EVP and CEO UK and Europe added: “This is an exciting time for English cricket and we’re thrilled to be furthering our long and successful partnership with the ECB. Together we will continue to help grow the game while boosting participation in the sport by children from all backgrounds through initiatives like our Dynamos Cricket Intros.

“On screen, we will continue to push boundaries in our BAFTA-winning coverage, bringing Sky Sports viewers even more live action from 2025 – including more women’s cricket than ever before – with men’s and women’s England internationals and domestic cricket. Sky’s investment over the last 30 years has contributed to a great deal of success on the pitch, and we hope to be at the forefront of much more to come.”

World Gymnastics Championships signs Kukri Sports as official workforce uniform supplier

International sportswear brand Kukri Sports has been named as the Official Workforce / Volunteer Uniform Supplier to the World Gymnastics Championships, Liverpool 2022. 

Kukri will be producing and supplying the official volunteer and workforce uniforms for the Championships, kitting out over 600 volunteers and staff who will be supporting the delivery of the event across spectator services, digital and media, sport, hospitality and event operations. 

The UK based brand is the official sportswear provider to some of sport’s leading institutions across the globe and currently supports over 100 sports. It is already a partner to British, Scottish and Welsh Gymnastics, as well as Team England.

Josh Beal, Sales Director at Kukri Sports, said: “It is great to be supporting the volunteers and staff at the World Gymnastics Championships, in Liverpool, this year. As proud partners to British, Scottish and Welsh Gymnastics, it is an event we are taking huge interest in as a business, and even more so with the Championships being held in the north-west. Many of our staff will be at the event watching and we can’t wait to see Kukri supporting the hard-working volunteers around the venue.” 

Gemma Williams Fox, Championships Director of the World Gymnastics Championships Liverpool 2022, added: “I am delighted to confirm Kukri Sports as an official supplier for our volunteer and workforce uniform at the 2022 World Gymnastics Championships in Liverpool. Based locally, and already working closely with the sport of gymnastics, we are excited to announce their involvement and look forward to working closely with them to deliver a world-class event. I know our workforce and volunteers will look and feel absolutely amazing in their Kukri kit.”

The bespoke Kukri uniform will be unveiled in October, and will contribute to the overall ‘look’ of the Championships and more importantly, help to create a real sense of pride and unity across the workforce, as they prepare to deliver a world-class event which will put Liverpool in the global spotlight once again. 

Benfica take step into Web3 with launch of new NFT series

Benfica just launched a new interactive blockchain platform of video-moment collectible NFTs, where the moments are some of the most iconic plays of some seasons.

NFTs, or non-fungible tokens, are unique digital assets that are designed to certify ownership of a virtual item, such as digital art or trading cards and digital collectibles, on the blockchain. The authenticity, rarity, scarcity, ownership, and other properties of NFTs are independently guaranteed, verified, and secured on the blockchain. Each purchase is original and exclusive to the purchaser. It makes it easy for consumers to trade their Benfica NFTs, at which time the NFT is transferred to the new owner.

With valuations for some sports NFTs already well over €1million, Benfica is continuing to move into the world of NFTs with its unique Video Moments NFT series – powered by Clancy.

NFTs are a new way for fans to acquire digital ownership of their truest passions.

We are doing things differently by providing a Benfica platform for our Members and fans to buy, trade, chat and enhance their NFT experiences. We wanted to give the fans more. They can collect NFT digital video moments in time, through blockchain technology, built to be extremely easy to buy and trade and accessible for all of our members and fans”, said Miguel Bento, Benfica’s CCMO.

Rem Langan, CEO of Clancy believes this launch with Benfica firmly establishes a modernized era of Video NFT collectibles on the fan-focused landscape, and hints that there is much more to come from Clancy: “Clancy enables fans to exclusively own interactive NFT video moments of their favorite teams. We are honored to kick-off this new technology with Benfica, one of the leading football clubs across the globe.” 

Benfica continues to progress in the NFTs world, with contents that are organized into 3 packs: the Primeiro Pack, our most eclectic pack and where you will be able to collect a little bit of everything: goals, defensive plays, tackles, passes that disrupt the opposing defense and much, much more; the Toque de Bola, a pack where you will find everything that makes this game beautiful. Collectors will be able to get players executing amazing dribbles, tricks, fancy footwork, nutmegs, ball control and other skills; and Top Golos, a pack that contains the essence of football: goals, a lot of goals… In every possible form that you might think – inside and outside the box, with the left or right foot, headers, team play goals, individual play goals, free-kicks, penalties and much more!