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Borussia Mönchengladbach of Germany’s Bundesliga football league has paused its sponsorship with Kindred’s Unibet as the online gambling operator has not yet obtained a German sports betting licence.
The issue was first flagged in news magazine Wirtschaftswoche, based on a complaint by the Gambling Addiction Association, which later said the club had confirmed it would pause the sponsorship for now, according to the Bild newspaper.
The name of the betting sponsor disappeared from the club’s game at Borussia Park last Saturday (April 16), according to GladbachLIVE.
The club’s “Unibet FohlenPodcast” has also been renamed Fohlenpodcast, according to the website.
Unlicensed operators are not allowed to advertise in Germany.
A spokesperson for the Stockholm-listed Kindred said the company did not want to comment because its first-quarter earnings report is coming out next week.
Kindred is not currently on the list of 41 sports betting licensees approved by the Darmstadt Regional Council.
The football club did not respond to a request for comment.
Online gambling operators are still awaiting word from the Saxony-Anhalt administrative office, which has yet to approve any online slots or online poker licences.
Separately, the German Football Association (DFB) has extended its sponsorship agreement with bwin to 2026.
Entain’s bwin has sponsored the DFB since 2017.
The new agreement includes the advertising rights for the DFB Cup, including the women's final, the 3rd division, the women's Bundesliga and the women's national team.
Bwin is also sports betting sponsor for five Bundesliga clubs throughout the 2023-24 season: Borussia Dortmund; Union Berlin; Cologne; St. Pauli; and Dynamo Dresden.
In 2021, German sports betting turnover was €9.4bn, a 21 percent increase over 2020, according to the German Sports Betting Association (DSWV).
