Bet365 And Stoke City FC Extend Shirt Sponsorship

UK based internet gambling giant Bet365 has announced that it has extended its shirt sponsorship deal with Stoke City FC.

The deal is worth seven figures and will see the betting firm replacing the Britannia Building Society, who sponsored the club's shirts for 15 years. Britannia will retain the stadium naming right until 2016.

Bet635 will become the ninth company since the 1980s to sponsor Stoke City's shirts.

Both Bet365 and Stoke City FC are majority owned by the Coates family, but that did not necessarily make them the shoe-ins for the deal. Stoke CEO Tony Scholes said: "The club is already hugely indebted to the support from bet365 and its owners, the Coates family. While Britannia and the Co-operative Group focus more on local and national markets, bet365, who are the largest private sector employers in the area, operate on a global basis."

"This agreement with bet365 means we have been able to maximise the international element of the club's exposure."

"We received a number of offers from potential sponsors, but bet365 were the highest bidders."

Denise Coates, the daughter of Peter Coates said: "It is a perfect fit for us as a Stoke-on-Trent-based company with a global reach and international markets. It also further demonstrates our long-term commitment to the club."

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