Betdaq Closes Its First Greyhound Sponsorship

Irish betting exchange to sponsor Greyhound Premier League This week's announcement from the Irish internet betting exchange firm Betdaq involves a notice of a sponsorship deal it has closed with the inaugural Greyhound Premier League, a new competition run by the Greyhound Owners' Breeders' And Trainers' Association (GOBATA). Based on the deal, the Betdaq Premier League sponsorship will involve an innovative structure to greyhound racing, allowing trainers and owners, as individuals or groups, to form a team of five greyhounds and compete against the country's crème de la crème. It has also been specified that the first qualifying heats of the sponsored league will be held at Doncaster Greyhound Stadium on Yorkshire Leger night, on the 16th November. There will be three qualifying events and six teams will be competing at each for two places. After that, each Betdaq Premier League season will comprise four nights of racing over an eight-week period. On that occasion, points will be awarded for finishing positions in each race, so teams will be relegated and promoted at the end of each campaign. The Grand Finals night will take place in February 2012 at Doncaster. According to Betdaq marketing director Shane McLaughlin, “Greyhound racing is an important product for our members and we have been assessing how to build a presence in the sport over the last year. GOBATA approached us with this new and innovative Premier League concept and we jumped at the chance to become lead sponsor and make the Betdaq Premier League a reality.” A GOBATA chairman, Martin White, also added: “We are hoping that the Betdaq Premier League will reinvigorate greyhound racing in the UK. Once established, with reputations building and rivalries created, we will have a product that will capture the imagination of the public and the betting industry. “The Premier League format has already proved successful in darts and snooker, combining both immediacy and a narrative. We are aiming to significantly increase the revenues going back to greyhound owners, breeders, trainers and kennel staff, and across all sections of practitioner involvement.”