Stoke reveal they will play at bet365 Stadium next season after agreeing new naming rights deal
Potters agree initial six-year naming rights deal with sports betting company giants as 'Britannia' will be scrapped
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STOKE will rename the Brit and play at the bet365 Stadium next season.
The move — thought to be worth £30million over six years, including shirt sponsorship — is part of a massive investment hike from current owners bet365, who have plans to raise the capacity to over 30,000 by filling in a corner of the ground.
Mark Hughes will also benefit as he looks to bolster his Potters squad after the betting firm confirmed they will extend their current shirt sponsorship with the club for another three years.
The Britannia Stadium became a notoriously tough venue for visiting clubs with Potters fans being some of the most vocal in the Premier League.
Now the capacity is set to be increased by a further 1,800 to take it over the 30,000 mark, with plans to redevelop the corner between the DPD and Marston’s Pedigree Stands by the start of the 2017/18 season.
bet365 has it’s HQ in Stoke-on-Trent and is the city’s largest private sector employer with almost 3,000 workers.
It is the latest boost to the Potters’ plans to push on and become a top six club under Hughes, who has transformed the club by signing a string of big name players such as Bojan, Xherdan Shaqiri, Marko Arnautovic and Ibrahim Afelllay.
The Stoke boss will look to immediately use some of his spending power to ensure Arnautovic signs a new deal to stay at the club.
Stoke Chief Executive Tony Scholes said: “The Premier League is constantly evolving and to ensure that Stoke City remain as competitive as possible it’s important we explore as many ways as possible of generating revenue.
“As supporters are no doubt aware the Britannia brand no longer exists and it was important that we attracted a new stadium naming rights partner.
“The Premier League is watched around the world and bet365 are a truly global company. We are delighted that we have been able to reach an agreement with them over the stadium naming rights for an initial six year period, along with the extension of their shirt sponsorship agreement.”
The stadium became the Potters’ permanent home when they moved from the Victoria Ground in 1997 and is set for a major makeover this summer in preparation for the start of the 2016/17 season — the Club’s ninth in the Premier League.