June 2 – Hard on the heels of announcing a six-year premium partnership with Chinese ecommerce giant Alibaba last week, UC3 and their sales agency Relevant Football Partners (RFP) have said they have entered exclusive negotiations with a betting partner for UEFA’s men’s club competitions.
UC3 did not say who that partner is other than it is a “selected betting company”.
In 2024 UEFA agreed a three-year deal with bet365 as the Official Global Sponsor and the exclusive sports betting partner of the UEFA Champions League.
That deal made bet365 the first ever betting brand to sponsor the Champions League, but ends with the next 2026/27 season.
Bet365 is reportedly the brand in negotiation with an extension of the contract that will be for the 2027-31 commercial cycle and will cover the Champions League, Europa League, Conference League, UEFA Super Cup and Futsal Champions League finals.
It will be the first time all three competitions have been aligned under a single betting sponsor.
No value has been given for the new rights cycle but sources say Relevent is on track to break the €1 billion annual revenue mark in sponsorship and licensing for UEFA’s men’s club competitions for the next cycle.
AB InBev, PepsiCo and Alibaba have been confirmed as partners and more are expected to be announced shortly, including a further deal for an unnamed “fourth and final top-tier package” also secured.
Nike are currently in exclusive negotiations to supply the official match ball for all three club competitions – the first time all three will have the same provider.
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