FEATURE: Betway and the development of sports in Ghana
Over the years, online sports betting have become very popular among the youth who see it as a means of making money while following their passion in sports.
Betway Ghana, a subsidiary of global brand, Betway Group, remains the biggest sports betting outfit in Ghana having begun operations in the country four years ago.
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The online betting company has over the years given back to society through several initiatives which offered sportsmen and women, coaches and journalists the platform to build their capacities.
Betway has mostly supported football in the country with the hope of unearthing and nurturing talents in the sport for the future.
It also sponsors three Ghana Premier League clubs financially as part of its contribution to the development of the top flight.
Football coaches in both the male and female categories have received training in capacity building which is aimed at improving on coaching in the country.
Aside from football, basketball has received its fair share of support from Betway with Sport Journalists receiving training as well.
Despite all these investments, the company has reaffirmed its preparedness towards developmental projects in sports in the form of Corporate Social Responsibilities (CSR).
Club sponsorship
Since its inception in Ghana in 2016, Betway has signed sponsorship contracts with Premier League sides, Aduana Stars, Ashantigold SC and Liberty Professionals.
The three clubs have continuously received financial assistance from the betting company to support their activities over the years as part of contribution to the Premier League.
To Betway, the decision to sponsor these sides would offer them financial boost in meeting their demands for successive seasons.
Betway Talent Search
Launched in 2017, the competition represents an initiative to discover football talents for persons above 18 years in the country.
The event has attracted and offered young footballers the platform to showcase their talents under the tutelage of former Black Stars skipper, Stephen Appiah.
Betway is looking forward to giving excelling footballers the chance to be scouted into the various clubs in order to sign professional contracts with elite clubs.
The annual talent hunt is expected to return once the COVID-19 outbreak eases in the country with a safe environment for participants.
Thought Leadership Seminar
Betway introduced the Thought Leadership Seminar to create an avenue for key players in the sports industry to share best practices and experiences that would help brand sports.
The annual event saw participants being taken through series of presentations on brand positioning, social media usage and sports marketing and sponsorship by experts.
With the company keen on helping clubs maintain their online presence to be able to gain competitive advantage, experts took club representatives through various ways to achieve that.
Betway Hoops
As part of measures to help develop basketball in the country, the company introduced Betway Hoops targeted at offering players the chance to play.
The annual competition involves teams from the various communities across the country, with the hope of extending it to the universities.
It was targeted at introducing basketball in the various communities as means of making it popular among the youth.
Betway 12th Man
In February this year, the betting brand introduced an exciting initiative in partnership with Ghanaian football legend, Stephen Appiah targeted at touching lives of local communities.
The Betway-sponsored initiative saw 10 ex-footballers (male and female) embarking on a life-changing four-month journey which will see them graduate with a variety of skills and qualifications to increase their chances of employment.
During this period, Betway alongside the programme’s ambassador, Appiah, invited various industry experts from the fields of coaching, broadcast, finance, and event management to give the former players practical skills that could be used in their various communities.
Betway Sports Writers Conference
Betway together with the Sports Writers Association of Ghana (SWAG) brought together over 80 Sports Journalists from print, radio, online and TV, to share ideas on capacity building and how to make use of the their online platforms.
The event saw sessions being delivered by Graphic Sports Editor and SWAG Vice-President, Maurice Quansah; Head of Sports for Media General, Michael Oti Adjei; and General Secretary of the Ghana Football Association (GFA), Prosper Harrison Addo last February.
Following a successful completion of the conference in Accra, certificates were handed out to the over 80 participants for taking part in the seminar.
Betway Ball Camp
The first-ever edition of the Betway Ball Camp was held last October at Teiman in Accra with the aim of targeting female sports coaches and professionals from various sports disciplines.
The seminar had thought leaders in the various disciplines take participants through sessions on the business of sports and opportunities, how to use social media to build global brands, professionalism and team discipline, and leadership and management.
The facilitators included Black Queens coach, Mercy Tagoe, Sports Journalists, Juliet Bawuah and Rosalind Amoh, legal expert, Eva Okyere and Laura Lake.
