Manchester United have filed a civil complaint seeking more than US$11 million from the guarantors of former official betting partner MoPlay, reports, www.sportspromedia.com/.
The Premier League club filed a complaint on 20th September in federal court, a fact first reported by Atlanta Business Chronicle, against Georgia-based Select Management Resources and its founder, Roderick Aycox.
The complaint regards Manchester United's global sponsorship agreement with a company called Addison Global, a deal first signed on 14th May 2018 and officially announced in August of the same year.
According to its website, Addison is a Gibraltar-based business and is behind the MoPlay betting app, with that platform the brand used as the official betting partner of United, as well as fellow English top-flight club Watford, with both deals now annulled. The MoPlay platform is still active and listed as a current partner of Hertha Berlin in the German soccer's Bundesliga, with that deal worth 1,000,000 (US$1.1 million) a year.
According to the court filing, the agreement with United was worth UK12,128,692 (US$15,152,617) and included rights for Addison to promote its products and brands across the club's physical and digital assets, as well as other sponsor benefits. The deal also included an interest clause on missed payments.
Further documents show that Select Management and Aycox guaranteed Addison Global's payments under the deal.
According to the filing, United allege that Addison Global defaulted on payments of UK981,000 (US$1.2 million) and UK1,010,430 (US$1.25 million) on 28th February and 31st May 2019, respectively, two instalments of a 12-part plan spread over three years. The remaining balance of the partnership was left at UK9,185,692 (US$11,475,868), plus an 8.75 per cent interest fee on that sum.
United claim the defendants are also liable for costs, which includes attorney fees.