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Everton are in talks with a Kenyan online sports betting firm about a lucrative new shirt sponsorship deal.

Nairobi-based SportPesa already have an agreement with Hull City which sees their logo emblazoned on the Premier League strugglers' kits.

But the company want to increase their UK profile even further and are pursuing a deal to take over as the Blues main commercial partner, when the 12-year association with Thai brewery Chang expires in the summer.

The ECHO understands that the deal would represent a considerable improvement on the £5.3m a year they currently receive from Chang.

SportPesa, which is owned and operated by parent company Pevans East Africa Limited, were only founded in 2014 but have rapidly become a major player in the growing online sports betting market.

Hull City, who signed an undisclosed but rumoured to be around £3m-per-year three-year deal in the summer, are not their only English football interest.

The firm are also currently Southampton's Europe and African partner, and in February they added Arsenal to their growing roster of commercial tie-ins.

SportPesa became the Londoners' Official Betting Partner in Kenya, a deal which involves Arsenal sending coaches to hold training camps in the East African nation.

Toffees majority investor Farhad Moshiri sold his shares in Arsenal and took over at Everton later that month.

Along with sponsoring the Kenyan Premier League and Rugby Union their logo also appears on the shirts of the country's most successful club Gor Mahia.

According to the Nairobi News wesbite SportPesa was started by a group of international investors including their chief executive Ronald Karauri, an ex Kenya Airways pilot , three Bulgarians and an Amercian businessman called Gene Grand.

According to Naibuzz.com the firm have made billions of Kenyan shillings in profit each year of its brief existence.

In Kenya alone their site reportedly grosses a daily average of one million users.

The ECHO attempted to contact Sports Pesa for comment but had received no reply at time of publication.

Betting firms increasingly dominate the Premier League shirt sponsorship market.

Philippines-based online gambling company Dafabet sponsor both Burnley and Sunderland, Asian firm BETEAST appear on Swansea's shirts, gaming site Mansion claim Crystal Palace and Bournemouth, while Stoke City (Bet365), Watford (138.com), West Brom (UK-K8.com) and West Ham (Betway) also follow the lucrative trend.

Elstone's Kenyan Trip

In July Blues chief executive Robert Elstone led a delegation from Goodison on a trip to Kenya to explore a proposed partnership with the Kenyan Football Federation.

They met with FKF president Nick Mwendwa at the Federation’s offices in Kasarani - and while the visit was more of a fact-finding mission, the Blues were keen to tap into football and business opportunities in Africa.

Mr Mwenda said: “Everton have paid us a courtesy call today to have some discussions around how we can partner in the future and to share some insights in the game. With their experience and our vision, we can work together in the future.”

Mr Elstone added: “We are very keen to look and see how we can help develop (football in Kenya).

“Whether that’s elite players, stars of the future or whether that’s around communities and winning hearts and minds, using football and using sport as a force for good to inspire lives and to change lives, whether it’s around general business management or whether it’s around commercial or business matters or stadium safety matters, then there’s an awful lot of areas we can explore.”