Sports
Everton Employ Former FSG Man to Fill £30m Void with New Kit Deal
At the end of this season, Everton, along with 10 other Premier League clubs, will end their association with their front-of-shirt gambling sponsors.
Back in April 2023, top flight sides voluntarily agreed that by the start of the 2026/27 season they would have phased out gambling sponsorships on the front of shirts, although gambling partnerships could still activate sleeve deals and advertising boards around club stadia.
The decision was taken after consultation involving the Premier League, its 20 member clubs and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport as part of the Government’s review of gambling legislation. While it was a decision welcomed by anti-gambling campaigners, it was one that will prove most impactful for the clubs outside the so-called ‘big six’, for whom gambling partnerships have been lucrative.
Merseyside Giants Working to Find New Opportunities
Gambling firms have for some time targeted the lower half of the Premier League, unable to partner with the biggest sides but able to offer enough to those often outside the Champions League conversation to break club records. They were sponsorship valuations that were incredibly difficult to achieve from other industries, especially blue chip companies.
All 11 clubs are now looking at what comes next and how they can get the best deal for the club without being able to lean on the more generous financial nature of gambling partnerships.
Everton are one of the clubs to have made a start. This past week has seen the Toffees engage California-based sports agency Range Sports to work alongside the club’s existing commercial team to identify commercial opportunities in the United States, with one of the areas within their remit being that of sourcing front-of-shirt and training wear sponsorship.
This isn’t new ground for the Toffees. Previously, the club had partnered with another US agency, Elevate Sports Ventures, who worked with the commercial team at the club to secure a stadium naming rights deal for their 52,888-seater new home, which has since become the Hill Dickinson Stadium following a multi-year agreement with the global legal firm earlier this year.
Elevate remains engaged on the commercial side for Everton, but the bulk of their work centred around nailing down a good, long-term naming rights deal for the Merseyside giants’ brand new, world-class facility.
Everton sources have told GIVEMESPORT that discussions with interested parties have already taken place, and that the main reason for partnering with Range was to maximise the potential in the US market when it came to commercial opportunities, but confirmed that the most valuable piece of sponsorship inventory on the kits was within their remit.
The decision to source additional support in the Americas points to the club’s new strategy under the ownership of Houston, Texas-based firm, The Friedkin Group, who completed the takeover of the club from Farhad Moshiri back in December of last year. After several years of reputational damage caused by the club lurching from one financial crisis to another, The Friedkin Group are aiming to grow the brand globally, and its more stable position as a Premier League club now, and the new stadium on the banks of the River Mersey, which brings with it commercial opportunities that simply did not exist at their former home, Goodison Park, which the club left at the end of last season.
The ability to negotiate a new deal for their front-of-shirt partner also comes at a good time for the club, with the deal having run to its contractual end date, and the club in a better position from a brand perspective to attract interest from different sectors, not to mention the increased ability to upsell that sponsorship through leveraging the commercial potential of Hill Dickinson Stadium.
“The key challenge for Everton will be that, with the betting restrictions, there are 11 Premier League clubs in the market,” Daniel Haddad, head of commercial strategy at global sports agency Octagon told GIVEMESPORT.
“Even if you take out the yo-yo clubs you have a good number of teams competing in that end of the market in that time range, such as Aston Villa, Nottingham Forest and others.
“What value can Everton achieve in the market for this deal post betting? It likely makes sense for the club to do a three-year deal for now instead of something longer, just to let the market settle itself post betting regulations.
“Their ambitions as a club, given the new stadium, the new ownership of the Friedkin Group and the links it has to other businesses, you would imagine the expectation would be to maintain at current levels, even with moving to another sector outside of betting. Can they achieve £10m to £12m for front-of-shirt sponsorship outside of betting? I would say that even with the current dynamics of so many clubs in the market, they are still a more attractive proposition than they were pre-stadium and pre-new ownership.
“However, the stadium is something where you are likely going to need to get a brand there to see it and buy into it, and that can be difficult early in the sales process.
“It’s going to be difficult, not just for Everton but also for clubs like Aston Villa. It would be interesting to see whether they hold their value on front-of-shirt or whether they take a short-term dip. Like anything, if you have an excess supply of assets to the market it creates those dynamics where it will impact price, but Everton will hope their proposition at least lets them maintain it.
“Having a US-based agency suggests that they might see the US as having high potential, and the US being less aware of those deflationary impacts as a result of the betting ban.”
Current Everton sponsors Stake do have the option to downgrade to a sleeve sponsorship or training deal, but it’s understood that no agreements have been made in relation to that. One upshot of a lack of being able to sponsor the shirt frontage may be that the value of sleeve deals becomes more valuable for gambling firms given that they can still participate in that market.
One of the leading figures on the search for new commercial opportunities in the US is understood to be Flint Reilly, head of property sales for Range Sports, who had previously worked for Liverpool owners Fenway Sports Group as senior director of global sales for the Americas for the Reds.
Sports
Why Arsenal Will Not Lift Premier League Trophy During Bus Parade
Details have emerged about the upcoming Arsenal bus parade to celebrate their Premier League title. Interestingly enough, it has been confirmed that the club will not lift the trophy during their nine-kilometre celebration route.
The Gunners were able to put to bed 22 years of hurt as they finally lifted the Premier League on Sunday. Their success was confirmed after Manchester City drew against Bournemouth earlier that week, making a trip to Crystal Palace a formality.
Mikel Arteta’s men were still able to pick up a 2-1 win, to finish the season with 85 points, seven points and one place ahead of Pep Guardiola’s side, but the main focus was on the trophy lift at the end of the game. Martin Odegaard led the celebrations, becoming the first Arsenal captain to hold the trophy aloft since Patrick Vieira in 2004.
However, he will not do the same on the title bus parade.
Arsenal Will Not Lift Premier League Trophy at Emirates
The event is scheduled to happen in north London on 31 May. A club statement has already explained: “We are delighted to announce that we will come together with our supporters and community for a special parade around our home borough of Islington, starting from 2pm on Sunday 31 May, to celebrate our title.”
The Gunners, of course, could have two trophies to celebrate with if all goes to plan. Indeed, the night before, Arsenal will take on Paris Saint-Germain in Budapest as they aim to win the Champions League final for the first time in their history.
Regardless of the result, however, there will be no official trophy lifting moment on the parade route. As explained by the Arsenal Supporters’ Trust, this is due to the huge numbers expected during the celebrations. They said:
“The parade is over 9km long. No trophy lift at the end or at town hall due to expected numbers. Therefore, there is no advantage in crowding into one area and you are advised to spread along the whole route.”
Police Expect at Least 500,000 People to Attend Arsenal Bus Parade
Both Arsenal and local police are expecting at least 500,000 people to show up for the event. For context, there were an estimated 100,000 gathered at the stadium last Tuesday after Man City drew with Bournemouth, confirming the win. Aston Villa had approximately just 50,000 at their parade after winning the Europa League, while the official estimate for the City parade – celebrating Pep Guardiola and the two domestic cups they won this season – was 6,000, plus a further 14,000 in the Co-op Arena later.
It would not be a surprise if figures were actually well over that 500,000 mark either. The Arsenal Supporters’ Trust also revealed that there will be road closures near the Emirates Stadium from 4am Sunday morning, due to the number of attendees at the title parade. Fans are advised not to park anywhere nearby if they want to access their car later on the same day.
They then added that there will be no event at the stadium on the day of the parade. What’s more, the club’s official shop, the Armoury, will also be closed.
Sports
Man Utd Eye £100m Aston Villa Forward Morgan Rogers
Manchester United director of football Jason Wilcox and manager Michael Carrick both want to sign a Premier League forward in the summer transfer window.
The Red Devils have been heavily focusing their recruitment on signing a new midfielder in the summer, but there’s no doubt they’ll be looking to strengthen in other positions.
Qualifying for the Champions League was a huge achievement for the club, but it comes with the need to spend significantly in the market.
Not only do United need better players in order to deal with the stronger opposition, they also need a deeper squad.
Signing a versatile forward could be a useful option for them, and it appears multiple members of the team are keen on signing one player.
Man Utd Eyeing Move to Sign ‘Special’ Tottenham Star in £60m Deal
Manchester United are looking to take advantage of Tottenham’s difficult last few years.
Man Utd Want ‘Superstar’ Forward
According to a fresh report from talkSPORT, Manchester United are interested in signing Aston Villa forward Morgan Rogers ahead of the summer transfer window.
Director of Football Wilcox is known to be an admirer of the England international, but he’s not the only one.
A previous report claimed that if Carrick was appointed as the permanent manager of United, their number one target could change to Rogers in the summer window.
With multiple figures at United who are involved in the recruitment strategy in favour of signing Rogers, it will be interesting to see if they make a move.
Rogers Could be Expensive Addition for United
Although Rogers would be a huge signing for United if they can get a deal over the line, it’s certainly not going to be cheap.
The report from TalkSport claims that a bidding war could drive Rogers’ price up to around £100m, which is a huge fee even in the modern era.
Rogers, described as a ‘superstar’, is attracting interest from a host of clubs this summer, so it’s never going to be an easy deal for United to complete.
It will be interesting to see whether the England international does leave Villa in the coming weeks and months, as the £100m asking price could put people off.
Sports
Liverpool Open Talks to Sign Yan Diomande
Liverpool are in talks over a deal to sign star forward Yan Diomande this summer, according to Fabrizio Romano.
The Reds had a disappointing campaign in the Premier League and Champions League, finishing fifth in the top flight after conceding a record number of goals and losing 13 games, while they were eliminated in the Champions League quarter-finals by Paris Saint-Germain, losing both legs of the tie.
The Anfield club are now planning major upgrades during the summer transfer window as they look to replenish their squad, and talks have begun for their first big signing.
Liverpool Open Talks for Yan Diomande
Diomande, who has been described as ‘lethal’, has been one of the breakout stars of the 2025/26 season with RB Leipzig, registering 13 goals and eight assists in all competitions in his first season with the club.
The 19-year-old has emerged as one of the most sought-after attackers in Europe ahead of the transfer window, and the Bundesliga club have slapped an £87m asking price on his head as a result, while they have also offered the Ivorian a new contract to boost his wages and include a release clause, in order to keep hold of him for another season.
But Liverpool are keen to get a deal done to bring him to Merseyside as they search for long-term replacements for Mohamed Salah, and they have now opened talks with the player’s camp to find an agreement.
Diomande has previously revealed that it is his dream to move to Anfield, having grown up as a Liverpool fan, but the club are also looking at alternative options just in case a deal cannot be done.
Paris Saint-Germain also have a strong interest in Diomande, and have also opened talks over a deal.
Diomande a Legend in the Making
While it may be early in the career of Diomande, he has all the attributes and quality to become a true legend at Anfield.
Liverpool fans love having tricky wingers who can get them off the edge of their seat and provide excitement, and Diomande is someone who can do just that, and more.
The massive transfer fee may prove to be a bit of a hurdle, but the club showed last summer that they are not afraid to splash the cash if they feel it’s the right thing to do. Diomande would be the spark this squad needs, and it could be a huge statement signing this summer.
Fabrizio Romano: ‘World-Class’ Liverpool Transfer Collapses After Decision Made
Liverpool have made their decision.
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