Sportsbook Sponsors Major Bicycle Race

UK Bookmaker William Hill has announced they will be one of the top three official sponsors in the 2009 La Vuelta a Espana cycle race. Marking the first time that an online gambling company has been allowed to sponsor a major race such as this, not only is this a great milestone, but it will provide over three solid weeks of coverage and brand promotion which spells great things for William Hill and their online branch of business.

William Hill Online operates not only a Sports Book, but also one of the UK's best known online casinos.

La What?
As one of the three grand cycle tours in Europe, along with the Tour de France and Giro d'Italia, the La Vuelta is a 3,266km race with five mountaintops to traverse.

Starting in Assen, Holland on August 29 and ending in Madrid on September 20, 2009, it is a grueling race with major coverage across international sporting and local channels.

William Hill will have the title rights to the "Green Jersey" for the overall sprint classification competition. They will also sponsor the signature points, where the riders sign in daily for the race.

Pablo Lopez-Barajas, Commercial Director of La Vuelta, said "We are delighted to have reached an agreement with WilliamHill.com... one of the most respected brands in its business and we appreciate the trust that they have in our sport, as a means of expanding within Spain."

Climbing the Mountaintops
Independent assessments have put the value of the contract at $400,000.

Looks like the cyclists aren't the only ones climbing those mountaintops with anticipation and hoping to see a tremendous finish on the effort put in.