Powerleague and Ladbrokes have announced the launch of an initiative to expand the availability of local pitches to footballers in the UK and Ireland.
Named ‘Primetime Pitches’, this first-of-its-kind deal will see the operator provide free access to venues operated by Powerleague, which operates a provider of small sized football pitches.
Head of Commercial for Powerleague, Dominic Reed, noted: “We’re thrilled to be launching this partnership with Ladbrokes and building on the ‘We Play Together’ messaging which resonates so well with us. Powerleague customers and the wider five-a-side community are in for a real game changing experience in tournament football at their local Powerleague venue.”
Primetime Pitches will give customers the chance to access free pitches every Thursday during peak hours at 10 Powerleague clubs across the UK and Ireland.
“We hope over the duration of the partnership many more players from our local communities have the chance to claim their prime-time slots and engage in the health and wellbeing benefits that Powerleague offers,” Reed added.
The initiative was brokered for Ladbrokes by M&C Saatchi and it will launch from 3 February and includes PR support from Finn Partners.
“We can’t wait to kick off this partnership with Powerleague,” added Ladbrokes Head of Brand Marketing, Kelly Rose. “It will help Ladbrokes build a presence at the heart of football culture and entertainment, and really underlines our ‘We Play Together’ proposition.
“We want to give players of all levels the opportunity to have a chance of claiming a pitch at a prime time for free and our first ever national tournament promises to mix football with popular culture in a way that has never been done before.”
Teams will be able to enter the pitch giveaway through Ladbrokes’ Twitter channel which will give customers the chance to access up to £400 of pitch time across a four-week period.
Partnering with Powerleague, Ladbrokes will launch its first nationwide five-a-side football tournament, offering players across the country the chance to be crowned the best five-a-side team in the UK.
The tournament will feature 480 teams across four Powerleague Clubs, with the grand final taking place in Birmingham. Participating players will have access to Powerleague’s pitch camera technology which means players can capture and record moments of sublime skill that will be showcased on Ladbrokes and Powerleague social media channels.
