Sports agency Matchroom MultiSport has added online betting brand BetVictor as title sponsor for the 2019-20 season of its Championship League Snooker tournament.
The initial one-year deal will offer the brand exposure through the broadcast of the tournament across multiple streaming platforms. This includes zhibo.tv, one of the biggest sports streaming operators in China.
The agreement builds on an existing partnership with Matchroom-owned World Snooker, which sees the brand title sponsor the European Series competition. The betting brand has also sponsored the English Open, Welsh Open and the Northern Ireland Open and Scottish Open snooker tournaments.
The Championship League has been running since 2008. Its upcoming season begins on October 7 and is staged over four weeks of play between now and its conclusion in March 2020. Its prize money totals up to £205,000 (€230,460/$252,560).
Meanwhile, World Snooker has announced a sponsorship with British formalwear brand Hawes & Curtis that will lead to the adoption of a new dress code for this season’s Home Nations series.
Starting with the English Open on October 14-20, players will wear black tailored long-sleeved shirts together with black or dark tailored trousers. Snooker’s traditional attire of waistcoats and bow ties has been dropped for the series.
World Snooker chairman Barry Hearn said: “The new dress code for the Home Nations events will help the series become distinctive and develop a unique identity.
“We know that waistcoats and bow ties are closely associated with the traditions of our sport and we have no plans to change the dress code for the majority of our key events. But we have decided to make this change for the Home Nations and we hope the black shirts will be stylish and practical for the players.”
Englishman Stuart Bingham won last season’s English Open.
