Betway, the globally recognised betting brand, has confirmed that it has signed a new partnership with NBA team Dallas Mavericks. The deal names Betway as the Official and Exclusive Free-to-Play Partner of the Texas franchise.
Betway’s branding will now be displayed in prominent locations around the Mavs’ court at the American Airlines Center. The deal comes on the back of Betway securing similar partnerships with five other NBA franchises in recent times.
The other five teams are the Brooklyn Nets, Chicago Bulls, Cleveland Cavaliers, LA Clippers and Golden State Warriors, highlighting the reach that Betway is extending into North America’s premier basketball competition.
Betway’s sponsorship involvement with North American sports does not end with basketball. The brand’s official partner in the NHL, North America’s premier ice hockey competition, is the New York Islanders. They also have some partnership deals in place with another NHL franchise – the Los Angeles Kings. Betway has also returned to sponsoring tennis events in 2021.
Ryan Mackey delighted with Betway deal
Mavs’ senior vice president of corporate sponsorships Ryan Mackey was delighted to have inked such a significant deal with a partner that possesses global status.
He said: “Betway has been a phenomenal partner from the beginning, working with us to navigate this industry in a state where there are still many uncertainties yet potential for massive growth. We look forward to providing tremendous value to both Betway and our fans.”
Betway CEO Anthony Werkman was delighted with the deal, which continues his company’s ongoing march into US territory.
“The Mavs are a globally recognised team that will help promote the Betway name around the world,” he said.
“We are excited to be showcased to their amazing fanbase whose loyal support helped the Mavs achieve the outstanding record for the longest run of sold-out games in major league sports.”
Mavs were NBA champions in 2011
The Mavs’ current head coach is Jason Kidd, and the team plays in the NBA’s Western Conference. Their inaugural season was 1980-81 and they have won four divisional titles and two conference championships in addition their crowning glory. This glory came in 2011 when the team from Dallas was crowned as NBA champions.
Betway is a part of Super Group, an internationally renowned global digital company that specialises in offering high-class content to the worldwide betting and gaming community. As well as Betway, Spin, the online casino brand, is part of the group, which is licensed in over 20 jurisdictions across the world.
The NBA is at the forefront of gambling partnership deals in North American sports. In 2020, the NBA was the first of the four major American sports leagues to allow gambling operators to sponsor them. They inked a major, three-year deal worth $25 million with MGM almost immediately after this was confirmed.
This positive view of gambling partnerships has put the NBA at the forefront of the sports industry, and emphasised basketball’s hip, innovative credentials.
Part of the motivation behind this change in policy from the NBA was also to generate finance to help the league recover from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic certainly exerted an extremely negative influence on NBA revenues, with the 2019/20 season’s revenues falling by ten per cent to US$8.3 billion.
The reportedly lost $800 million in ticketing revenue alone, so the liberalisation of the league’s sponsorship policies has certainly helped to mitigate that. The NBA has also liberalised its policies around casino gaming sponsorships. The Memphis Grizzlies were one of the first franchises to take advantage of the change in rules, inking a deal with FanDuel.
Another basketball betting innovation that has grown, partly due to the effects of the pandemic on live sporting events, is virtual basketball betting. Virtual basketball is a concept where computer generated teams play out contests on which bettors can place wagers.
An entire league season can be played out in afternoon, opening up a vast number of betting possibilities. The teams are built to have specific attributes and the results of matches are controlled by Random Number Generators.
Fans of virtual basketball betting can also find plenty of entertaining options at Betway, adding more variety for hoops fans who like to test their luck and knowledge of the game with a wager. Basketball betting options certainly look like expanding their range significantly in the coming years.
