PokerStars Signs Ad Deal with France's Lyon Football Club

PokerStars Signs Ad Deal with France’s Lyon Football Club


By Dave Ferrara
January 22, 2013
PokerStars has inked a deal with Olympique Lyonnais, one of the most popular football clubs in France.
The new deal means that team supporters can participate in a daily tournament on PokerStars.fr to win VIP seats for games, “access to players during warm-up,” team souvenirs and tournament tickets, according to a news release from PokerStars.
Often referred to as Lyon or OL, the football club is one of the most popular in France and plays in the premier French division, Ligue 1.
The partnership allows PokerStars to advertise on olweb.fr, the club’s television channel and at Stade de Gerland during games.
“During the season, many more activities will take place between PokerStars and Olympique Lyonnais,” PokerStars spokesman Mark Stuart said.
The agreement is a sign of the expanding global reach of PokerStars, which branched further into the sporting world last year when it signed Rafa Nadal to Team SportsStars.
France is the only market in which PokerStars is not the market leader. Winamax overtook PokerStars.FR in early 2012 and strengthened its lead over the course of the year.