Santos names Agibank as master sponsor after suspension of Novibet deal

Santos has signed Agibank as its new master sponsor through the end of the current season, filling the front-of-shirt slot left vacant after the suspension of its deal with Novibet. For high-risk operators, the detail that matters is simple: Brazil’s betting advertising restrictions are already forcing clubs to reshuffle sponsorship inventory in real time.

1. The Agibank logo will appear on the main front-of-shirt position on Santos’ men’s first-team kit, with the debut scheduled for Sunday’s match against Fluminense in the Campeonato Brasileiro.
2. Agibank replaces Novibet in the top sponsorship spot after Santos suspended the contract, rather than terminating it outright. The club said it chose suspension as a way to reach an immediate resolution while the issue has not yet reached Congress.
3. Santos had signed Novibet in mid-February on a three-season deal worth R$ 35 million, plus variable amounts. Novibet, which is based in Malta, had already advanced part of the contract payment.
4. The trigger was a Federal Government Provisional Measure prohibiting the operation, offering, intermediation, and advertising of bets and online casinos in the country. Santos said it could not deliver the contractual commitments tied to that sponsorship under the new rule.
5. President Marcelo Teixeira framed the Agibank deal as proof of Santos’ brand strength and management credibility, while also pointing to the club’s need for new revenue. He said the partnership would help support a major team and ongoing projects.

Santos also has other shirt properties assigned to NR Sports, the company belonging to Neymar’s family, which has been placing its own brands on the kit, including Marca Pelé and Instituto Projeto Neymar Jr. That arrangement was granted in exchange for payment of a transfer ban.