Aviator is one of the most popular modern casino games. As it continues to sponsor major sporting brands, could it be heading to college football and the NFL?
The NFL is a huge stage for brands to be noticed and college football is already catching up. Already courted by online sportsbooks and fantasy sports, so far, neither have a crash gaming sponsor. As Aviator, the main title in the genre, makes its way into sports, could football be the next stop?
What are Aviator and Spribe?
Aviator now has 40 million worldwide players. It arrived in 2018 and overhauled the world of online gambling titles. Previous games often had a closed-door approach. If you wanted to play poker, you needed to learn a large amount of strategy as well as the rules of the game itself. Even slot machines had a degree of knowledge behind them, which alienated many from online casinos.
Aviator changed this, making a gambling game that was easy to pick up and play. The concept was, and remains, that you have to bet on the path of an onscreen aircraft. If you stay in the game, your wager increases with the addition of multipliers. Yet if you don’t cash out before the plane crashes, you lose.
Aviator also added previously unused social elements. Players entered the lobby before the game began, and they could chat and view leaderboards. As they all bet on the same event, this made it hugely different from other forms of casino gaming. It is now played all around the world, at operators such as Betway. Aviator MZ is available to anyone in Mozambique who has a smartphone and a connection.
Aviators' Newest Brand Ambassador
Brazilian UFC featherweight Diego Lopez was announced in September as the brand's newest ambassador. He is now set to work on a range of marketing activities with Spribe and is one in a long line of UFC fighters who have been named brand ambassadors. These have included Alex Pereira, Arman Tsarukyan, and Merab Dvalishvili.
Of the partnership, Lopez noted that “Aviator is one of the most thrilling games I have ever experienced, and that’s why I am proud to become an Aviator ambassador. Strap in, hold tight, and watch as the plane and the win multiplier climb higher. But just like a knockout punch, timing is everything; you need to pick the right moment to cash out and lock in the biggest wins. Keep your eyes peeled, as we have some great campaigns in the works.”
Ambassadors in the NFL, or even in college football, would be a great boost for the chosen individuals. While the amount paid to Lopes for the partnership is unknown, this would be a financial incentive to individual football players. However, the difference is that MMA fighters are independent. Players may have contractual agreements with their teams that prevent them from signing up to these deals.
Aviator and AC Milan
Other than picking a brand sponsor from the NFL, Spribe could opt to sponsor whole teams. This could work in a similar way to how it has its logos and branding at certain WWE and UFC events. A similar partnership was recently signed with the AC Milan football club in Italy. The Avaiator game is now the Official Crash Gaming Partner of the club. This will provide new opportunities for entertainment within the Rossoneri family, the affectionate term for AC Milan's global fanbase.
David Natroshvili, the CEO of Spribe, added that “We are pioneers in the crash game format and among the development teams forging significant marketing partnerships with organisations and sports teams, like this agreement with AC Milan.” The club itself has recently signed a different betting agreement with a major European provider.
This could be a new direction for NFL teams and provide another form of sponsorship. So far, more than 25 teams have at least one betting or daily fantasy sponsor. By incorporating a crash gaming partner, they would get another revenue stream without breaking any contractual agreements with other gambling companies.
Partnerships with TKO
The main issue is who is the first to do it. Spribe is really the dominant crash gaming supplier, and while there are other titles, none have the brand identity Aviator does. Thus, it may be a lucrative opportunity for the first past the post.
A further point can be seen in Spribes' partnerships with TKO, the owners of UFC and WWE. It has now had its logos shown on the Octagon and in WWE rings. In the latter, it is only at selected events, mainly from jurisdictions where online casinos are legal. This could be operated in a similar manner to NFL sponsorships.
Alternatively, the NFL or college football could see their own crash gaming titles. The NHL has done so with slots before in the Gold Blitz game. This is a path many teams and sporting individuals have taken, though it remains to be seen for licensed crash gaming titles, in the vein of Aviator MZ, to be made.
