Betsson subsidiary sponsors Dutch hockey

Kroon online casino, a Dutch-facing subsidiary of the Swedish Betsson gambling group, has entered into a two-year sponsorship deal with Dutch ice hockey association Nederlandse IJshockey Bond, conditional on the legalisation of online gambling in the Netherlands.

The amount of the sponsorship was not disclosed, but Betsson director Patrick Jonker said in a statement that Kroon sees plenty of opportunities for ice hockey in the Netherlands to grow, and that his company looks forward to the opening up of the Dutch online gambling market.

“As a company based in a major ice hockey country Betsson approaches this sponsorship with a warm heart,” he said, hinting that further sponsorships in the Netherlands could be on the horizon, possibly with Kroon’s sister online casino Oranje.

Rob van Rijswijk, vice chairman of the Nederlandse IJshockey Bond, said that the goal of the association was to make Dutch ice hockey a competitive force to be reckoned with. New concepts and events were being planned to bring the sport closer to the Dutch public, and the sponsorship from Kroon came at just the right time, he said.

Kroon’s sponsorship replaces that of another online gambling company, Jacks Casino, owned by JHV Gaming.