European Cricket League Lands Leading Crypto Betting Platform Stake.com Sponsorship

Cricket commonly referred to as the ‘Gentleman’s Sport’ – is a prevalent sport with fans spread across the globe. Notably, the European Cricket League (ECL) has even drawn a larger audience, providing cricket fans with the most competitive professional games to watch. 

That’s probably because it features well-performing cricket teams and players all over Europe. Also, the T10 games are action-packed and full of scoring, making the events more intriguing and exciting. Luckily, most sportsbooks now include the cricket sport in their gambling platforms with lucrative odds so punters can bet on their preferred cricket teams.

The ECL keeps improving its brand as it continues to increase its viewership through phenomenal marketing and sponsorship. It has partnered with reliable gambling sites to increase reach and transform fan engagement. The European Cricket League has announced that the world’s biggest crypto betting platform, Stake.com, will be the leading partner for the European Cricket Championships running in September/October 2022. Read on for more information about the deal:

The partnership

The CEO of the ECL, Roger Feiner, commented about the partnership, saying that European Cricket is honoured to collaborate with the most innovative crypto-betting platform for the 2022 European Cricket Championships. With this alliance, the ECL is now part of Stake.com’s high-profile sponsorships, including partnerships with superstars like Sergio Aguero and the Indian Super League team Mumbai City FC. According to Feiner, ECL and Stake are both innovators, so they may have common principles and practices. 

Dominic Rae, the Partnership Manager of Stake.com, stated that the company was happy to work with the ECL. According to him, the sport has witnessed immense growth in the field and with its followers. As its principal partner, Stake’s brand is expected to feature across the League’s digital platforms. The new collaboration will strengthen Stake’s betting market by including ECL fans in the Stake community.

Therefore, both parties look forward to preparing the most engaging tournament for all the participants and fans worldwide.

Benefits for both parties

Here are some of the benefits this partnership can bring to Stake.com: 

• The company can drive engagement levels among fans through a wide range of offerings.
• It provides ideal opportunities to introduce betting to casual fans or prospective punters in a wide range of sports.
• Stake can collect vital data from fans that can help the company create exclusive betting content for specific markets.

Also, the ECL gets the following perks:

• The franchise gets solid financial backing from Stake.com, so it can successfully finance different activities during the tournament. According to Statista, the world’s sports sponsorship market was worth around USD$57 billion (GBP£51.2 billion)‎ as of 2020. The value is expected to grow in the coming years, reaching approximately USD$90 billion (GBP£80.9 billion) by 2027. The increased partnerships between gambling companies and sports leagues are one of the reasons for the high revenue generation.
• The betting platform can leverage its customer database to market tickets and merchandise to new audiences. This guarantees increased income for the sports brand.
• The league can introduce innovative and interactive engagement methods like crypto betting to the fans. This way, they get more involved with the sport, improving the viewing experience.

About Stake.com

Stake.com is well-known as an online casino and sportsbook with a platform that features cricket betting and showcases the fast-growing niche of cryptocurrency gambling. The website sponsors Everton F.C. in the English Premier League and is the Official Betting Partner of the UFC in Latin America and Asia. Cricket sponsorship is the next frontier for the gambling giant.

The gambling platform was established in 2017 and is fully licensed by the Gambling Commission. The company has witnessed immense growth over the years and is now considered one of the best crypto betting websites offering a more innovative and secure way of gambling. And as the betting market continues to expand, the company is expected to leverage all opportunities to garner new audiences and prepare for unmatched growth.

According to Statista, the global gambling industry value reached USD$61.5 billion (GBP£55.3 billion) as of 2021. The amount is forecasted to increase to about USD$114.4 billion (GBP£102.9 billion) by 2028. This represents over 86% growth. The growth is mainly attributed to the increased betting activities across different sports. With such an excellent market potential comes intense competition, especially among the betting industry’s key players.

Therefore, to increase their stake in the market, Stake is exploiting competitive strategies like aligning with professional leagues through sponsorships. This facilitates comprehensive coverage as the company gets exposure to millions of watching fans. The partnership with ECL in the upcoming European Cricket Championships this September further expands Stake’s sponsorship portfolio. 

Other partnerships

As part of its marketing innovation, Stake also boasts an extensive partnership with diverse, world-class athletes and celebrities as its global ambassadors. For instance, in March this year, Drake and Stake agreed on a partnership deal, making him an official ambassador for the brand. The hip-hop artist has a long history of placing hefty wagers on his favourite sports, such as the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). And having a strong interest in crypto, Stake offered him a portfolio to explore his interest, and he has since become an active fan of the platform.

His most popular bet on Stake is the heavy USD$1 million (GBP£900,200) wager on Israel Adesanya at UFC 276. Luckily, the UFC Middleweight Champion won the fight unanimously, ending the superstar’s betting losing streak. Drake and Stake partnered to donate his USD$1 million (GBP£900,200) pay-out to the LeBron James Foundation to activate the deal. According to the Canadian superstar, his collaboration with Stake was ‘inevitable.’

Other key partners include:

• UFC stars Israel Adesanya and Jose Aldo: In 2021, Stake.com secured a new partnership with the top UFC middleweight contender Israel Adesanya. As a global brand ambassador for the platform, Adesanya supports the company in sponsorship activities, such as exclusive appearances and gambling promotions. The Stake community also can access VIP fight experiences. This alliance made the star the first Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fighter to collaborate with a crypto-betting company.

Since his UFC debut in 2018, the middleweight star has been on a winning streak and only has one career loss. His UFC record currently stands at 23-1. Also, he remains undefeated at 185 pounds in middleweight bouts with a record of 12-0. With this impressive performance, he has acquired millions of supporters who are always eager for his matches.

Also, after expanding its UFC partnership to include Brazil, Stake brought in Jose Aldo, a former UFC Featherweight Champion, as the Brazilian ambassador in April. These UFC signings have enabled Stake to strengthen its UFC product and market.

• Argentina Striker Sergio Aguero: The star will work with the crypto betting platform ahead of the FIFA World Cup 2022 that’s set to happen in Qatar. Some agreed-upon initiatives include betting promotions, exclusive content, and VIP guest packages. Sergio Aguero is considered one of the greatest strikers in the game. The football star boasts over 400 goals in his 18-year career, including 260 goals at Manchester City and 41 goals for Argentina. He also won his major Copa America title with Argentina.

Also, after talks with Argentina’s coach and Football Association (FA) president early this year, Aguero got his new role as one of Argentina’s backroom staff in the upcoming World Cup. Therefore, with this significant role and influential position, the multi-year partnership deal with Stake is expected to boost the company’s global brand visibility. 

The European Cricket League (ECL)

ECL is a professional cricket league played annually by the winning clubs of European top league competitions. The league was formed in 2018 by Daniel Westone to popularise the sport in the continent. The ECL is equivalent to the UEFA champions league. And just like the Champion League structure worked out well for European Football, it’s expected to also pick up for European cricket. 

The ECL’s first inaugural edition happened in 2019 in La Manga Club, Spain, featuring eight International Cricket Council (ICC) member federations. The teams were divided into two groups of four, and the top two were to proceed to the semi-finals and then the finals. VOC Rotterdam emerged as the winners after beating SG Findorff by 101 runs.   

The league has since then increased the number of teams qualifying for future competitions. For instance, in the 2020 edition, there were 16 participants, but the tournament was cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Founding ECL sponsors

The founding sponsors of the European Cricket League include:

• Victoria Cervezas: Victoria Beer is a local brewery company in Malaga that’s highly linked to the city. It was first established in 1928 and opened its present brewery in September 2017. The ECL announced its partnership with the local brand before its first international cricket tournament (ECC21) in Malaga. The company was the official supplier of beer throughout the duration. Fans and players were also welcomed to tour the ‘Victoria Space’ after the competitions.
• CarGest: CarGest is a car rental company located near Malaga International Airport. It was founded in 1996 and continues to offer outstanding customer service. The company joined forces with ECL in the 2021 European Cricket Championships as the Official Car Rental Partner. The partnership was mutually beneficial. The ECL got a financial boost to launch the event, whereas CarGest got exposure to a broader market.
• Kookaburra: Kookaburra is a cricket ball manufacturing company. In 2019, the company collaborated with ECL in a 3-year partnership as its official ball and kit partner. The Kookaburra’ Regulation’ white ball, its pads, and helmets were used for the tournaments.

European Cricket Network

European Cricket Network (ECN) was established in 2019 and serves as the primary digital platform for cricket in Europe. It aims to improve the sport by harnessing the power of technology to broadcast cricket tournaments, create engaging content, and share it with fans worldwide through ECN media partners. The creation of ECN has enabled ECL to produce top-level competitions accessible to athletes and fans across Europe.

ECN broadcasts the following three main cricket events:

• European Cricket Series (ECS): A series of cricket tournaments that usually happen throughout the year among the best domestic clubs.
• European Cricket League (ECL): The annual cricket tournament that features champion clubs from member countries.
• European Cricket Championship (ECC): In the upcoming September competitions, coverage of all the events will be broadcasted and shared by ECN with all the international partners. The organisers forecast a global audience of over 40 million per day.

European Cricket Championships (ECC)

The European Cricket Championship is played in the T10 format, and ECL hosts the tournaments. It’s considered the only professional T10 competition to take place outside of Britain. Just like a football match, fans get to watch high-scoring matches in a short span (90 minutes). This is one of the aspects that has contributed to its rise in popularity.

The T10 format is a shortened version of the T20 cricket format. That is, a single innings is limited to 10 overs (60 legal balls per side). The format was introduced and experimented with through the Abu Dhabi T10 League in 2017. By decreasing the number of overs per side from 20 to 10, they managed the fans’ attention span until the end of the game. And with the many teams contesting in the ECC, the brief duration is suitable as it makes it possible to play and complete more matches.

ECC 2022 T10 edition is set to take place from 12th September to 14th October at Cordama Oval in Malaga, featuring 21 national teams. There’ll be four groups with five teams each. Here’s how the events are scheduled:

• Group A: September 12th-16th
• Group B: September 19th-23rd
• Group C: September 26th-30th
• Group D: October 3rd-7th

Conclusion

The partnership between ECL and Stake.com is expected to pave the way for more opportunities for both parties. In essence, the interdependent relationships between betting companies and professional leagues often translate value to the relevant leagues and sportsbooks.

For instance, by investing good money in different sports clubs, betting operators get a platform to expand their reach and engage their target audience. On the other hand, the sports leagues get the financial resources to fund various activities and even support players. Also, the bookies promote the sport on their platforms, increasing their viewership. This results in high revenues for both.

Above are the details about the sponsorship and more information about the partners. Therefore, as a cricket fan, expect a real-time experience in the upcoming European Cricket Championships. You can also bet on your favourite teams using the best crypto betting platforms like Stake.com. If you’re a beginner, you can research betting tips online. Altogether, remember to bet responsibly.