Online casino and poker room, 888.com, has terminated its sponsorship of the World Championships three years into its five-year deal, whilst insurance provider, Saga, has announced that it will no longer back the Wembley Masters. The terminations leave the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA), the game’s governing body, with a shortfall in prize money of around £1.5 million.
In a letter to it its players the WPBSA said: “Both companies have stated that the current economic climate is affecting marketing budgets in all industries and that market conditions had changed during the course of the agreements.
“We are currently out in the marketplace, proactively contacting potential sponsors through our sponsorship agency IMG. We remain optimistic that we will find new sponsors for the World Championship and the Masters”.
The World Championship and Masters were backed by tobacco companies, until 2005 when a government ban outlawed their sponsorship.
Printer-friendly version