Reading FC supporters’ group STAR has criticised the club’s decision to make online casino brand Mr Vegas its new front-of-shirt sponsor.
The Supporters’ Trust At Reading said the partnership would disappoint a “significant portion” of the fanbase and questioned the decision to replace local business Select Car Leasing on the front of the shirts.
Reading announced the club-record sponsorship agreement with Mr Vegas ahead of the 202627 season.
STAR said gambling sponsorship in football was a “divisive and well-debated topic”, while acknowledging the financial pressures facing the club as it continues its recovery.
The trust said it understood the environment in which “the highest sponsorship bidder is the best sponsorship bidder”.
However, it added: “There is also no question that gambling can destroy lives and its overbearing presence in football guarantees high visibility – not just amongst those struggling with gambling addiction, but also amongst children.”
“This is especially disappointing for a club that has always been at its best when leading with a family club ethos,” STAR said.
The group also expressed its disappointment at Select Car Leasing no longer appearing on the front of Reading’s shirts.
The company will remain a principal partner of the club, but its logo will not feature on the front of the shirt for the new season.
STAR described Select Car Leasing as “genuine fans and a thriving local business” which had “delivered above and beyond their duties in the club’s darkest moments”.
“To replace a sponsor of that calibre with an online casino feels especially jarring,” the trust added.
The supporters’ group also criticised what it said was a lack of fan consultation over the decision.
“As usual, the club has made this decision without any form of fan consultation,” STAR said.
It called on Reading to make sponsorless replica shirts available to adult supporters, as well as children.
The trust said replica shirts were “an important part of the game for a huge number of fans” and urged the club to follow the example of other clubs by ensuring the gambling sponsorship did not prevent supporters from wearing Reading’s colours..
The club said the deal represented its biggest-ever front-of-shirt sponsorship agreement.
