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Sports betting firms are the top sponsors of clubs in Brazil’s top two football leagues. But more recently, operators have started to make a presence in other sports as well, such as basketball and volleyball, and to diversify their investments throughout the country.
Although football remains the sport with the biggest sponsorships, betting firms are starting to invest in sports with less commercial attention. The strategy is an attempt to diversify the brand exposure and help develop more professional competitions.
In the present, about one quarter of the teams playing in the top professional basketball league in Brazil, the Novo Basquete Brasil (NBB), have sponsorships with betting operators. In men’s volleyball, the only team that currently has a betting sponsor is one in the Superliga.
Diversification Creates New Opportunities
1PRA1 is one of the businesses that invest in something other than football, sponsoring Cruzeiro Basquete and Avaí’s football team. Expanding into other sports is an opportunity to reinforce the sporting ecosystem in Brazil, said Tiago Grecco, the company’s Chief Marketing Officer.
Grecco stated: “Brazil is a powerhouse in basketball and volleyball, sports with enormous engagement potential that often do not receive support proportional to their talent.”
He added: “Investing in projects such as Cruzeiro Basquete is a way to strengthen the sports market as a whole, improving team infrastructure while bringing us closer to different groups of passionate sports fans.”
Football Still Leads Betting Sponsorships
Although diversifying, football is still the main attraction for betting sponsorships in Brazil. Around 60% of clubs that play in Brazil’s Série A have a betting partner, a percentage which rises to around 50% for clubs that play in the Série B.
There are currently only three clubs receiving sponsorship in football and basketball, with Flamengo, Corinthians and Cruzeiro having both sections, showing a progressive increase in commercial partnerships in various sports.
As sportsbooks are becoming more visible beyond football, there’s an attempt to reach more audiences and offer some financial assistance to sports that don’t have as big a commercial arena.
Popular Betting Markets Drive Expansion
While football is still the most popular game to wager on, other sports have caught bettors’ eyes. Industry sources indicate that after football, UFC, tennis, and basketball are among the most popular sports to bet on.
It is anticipated that operators will diversify their sponsorships in search of new audiences. More investment would give clubs more stability and visibility to events that have not been considered to have a sufficient number of commercial partners.
As Brazil’s regulated betting market continues to grow, the mix of sponsorships and increased fan participation could prove to be a formula for the growth of basketball, volleyball, and other sports in the nation’s profile.
Source: iGaming Brasil
