Soccer legend Eden Hazard recently became a brand ambassador for the online gambling giant Stake.com and showed excitement about supporting the operator ahead of the World Cup. However, he has now gotten himself into potential trouble because Stake.com is a banned brand in his home country.
Hazard Joined Stake as a Brand Ambassador
Hazard joined Stake a few days ago. The former winger, famous for his time at clubs like Chelsea, Real Madrid, and Belgium’s national teams, promised to work with Stake on various activations and marketing campaigns to promote the company’s brand.
Hazard said that he couldn’t “wait to interact with fans in new and significant ways, sharing insights, excitement, and the pure joy of football together with Stake.” The partnership was celebrated with a short promotional video that was shared across Stake’s social media accounts.
The deal aimed to utilize Hazard’s large following across social media, which includes 27 million followers on Instagram, 21 million on Facebook, 6.3 million on X, and 3.75 million on Weibo.
Although the deal was lauded by both Stake.com and Hazard, it might bring some problems for the former professional athlete, who is now under scrutiny in his home country of Belgium.
Hazard Could Face Sanctions in Belgium
For context, Belgium has some of the strictest gambling rules and prohibits the advertising of gambling. Moreover, Stake.com is one of the gambling websites on the Belgian Gaming Commission’s black list.
Consequently, the Belgian Gaming Commission is now planning an investigation into the matter to find out if Stake’s collaboration with Hazard directly targets the Belgian market. If it does, Hazard will be given a formal notice to sever his ties with the gaming company. Failure to do so could lead to further sanctions.
For context, Stake.com has been a prohibited brand since 2021, when the commission blacklisted it along with several other operators. The reason was its lack of a license, as Belgium only permits licensed companies to offer gaming.