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Newcastle United sponsorship deal: right or wong-a?

There has been plenty of debate about the morals and ethics of the latest sponsorship deal involving one of the regions’ Premier League football teams.

After Newcastle United pulled the plug on the deal involving Virgin Money – the main debate was who was going to come in and what they would pay. There was also talk of the stadium name going back up for sale with any kit deal. Word began to leak over the weekend that payday-loan company Wonga were the leading interested party, sparking outrage from fans, MPs and anyone else that has some kind of vested interest in the club.

Fans didn’t want to be associated with a company that “preyed on the weak” and took advantage of folk when they were in desperate need of some cash. Local MPs echoed the concerns of some fans and many threatened to boycott the club.Whether or not Wonga utilised the power of social media and looked up fans concerns remains to be seen. But they pulled off a PR masterstroke by not only agreeing a new deal to become the club’s main sponsor but also for the stadium. To relief of United fans around the world, they steered clear of naming the ground The Wonga Arena and instead gave the name back to the fans and renamed the ground St. James’ Park. A quick look at Twitter shows something of a turnaround in Newcastle fans’ opinions of the loan firm.

But what of the ethics? Are people right to be outraged?

A quick look through Premiership clubs sees the following firms involved in sponsorship;

Aston Villa – Genting Casinos

Everton – Chang Beer

Stoke – Bet365

Swansea – 32Red

Wigan – 12Bet

You will notice a combination of betting and alcohol firms. Not forgetting that the region’s other Premiership club, Sunderland, were, until this season, sponsored by an online bingo firm. If you’re going to question the morals and ethics of Wonga – you’d be inclined to do the same with these firms as alcohol and gambling are a cause of many social issues. Apart from anything else, the sponsors of the Premier League itself – Barclays – aren’t exactly whiter-than-white after they were fined earlier this year for trying to manipulate bank interest rates which would influence the cost of loans and mortgages to you and I.

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This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Stephen Farrell .