As if football clubs in Europe haven’t had enough to deal with trying to negotiate financial considerations and more post-coronavirus pandemic, the news that eight La Liga clubs must find a new shirt sponsor in time for next season is a headache they don’t need.
According to El Pais and cited by Football Espana, clubs in the Spanish top flight will no longer be allowed to wear betting company logos on their shirts.
That means all of Valencia, Alaves, Leganes, Granada, Mallorca, Sevilla, Osasuna and Levante somehow need to find a company willing to spend serious money in the current climate in order to keep that particular revenue stream going.
Betting forms an integral part of the football experience for many, so the loss of this particular way of publicising their businesses could have huge repercussions.
El Pais via Football Espana advise that the move follows the approval of laws on Spain’s ‘Royal Decree on Advertising.’
That is a federal bill which permits a ‘four-hour advertising window (between 1-5am)’ for licensed gambling companies, but no exposure outside of that time slot.
It remains to be seen that the potential loss of further income puts those clubs at even more of a disadvantage than usual.