After the relegation caused the termination of the Chinese company LD Sports as Espanyol's main sponsor, the club has announced a week before the start of the season that the bookmaker Betway will wear it on the front of the shirt. The club has not explained the framework of the agreement, although everything will also depend on where Espanyol plays next season, as has happened with the previous sponsor.
It is not the first bookmaker to sponsor Espanyol. Interwetten, who came to Espanyol in 2004 and from 2008 sponsored the shirt, was one of the first sponsors when this type of business that has nurtured a lot of money for football began to grow. Betway has been collaborating with other Spanish soccer teams but since 2015 it has been the main sponsor of West Ham, a club to which it pays around seven million euros per season.
Obviously, in the parakeet club the amount will be much lower taking into account the decrease in the impact of the entity on the player in Second Division and without participating in Europe, as if it happened the previous season. Apart from appearing on the shirt, Betway will have a presence in other premium media of the perico club.
This announcement comes in full debate in the Government for the suitability of betting houses sponsor sports entities. The Minister of Consumption, Alberto Garzón, commented in a recent interview in La Sexta that “It is reckless, and they are making a radical mistake and they will have to correct it because the law is the law and we are facing a very important problem”. Several media outlets, such as El Confidencial, suggest that a prohibition law could come out in October.