A Premier League club has infuriated fans by agreeing a shirt sponsorship deal with a betting company which appears to offer odds on COCK-FIGHTING.
AFC Bournemouth this summer signed a two-year multi-million-pound arrangement with unknown gambling firm bj88 - which it described as 'record-breaking' - meaning the online bookies' logo will be seen by millions of football supporters worldwide.
But the deal has sparked anger among its own supporters and animal rights activists after it emerged bj88 appears to allow customers to make wagers on live cock-fighting, which is illegal in much of the world but is permitted in Cambodia.
The blood 'sport' sees blades attached to the ankles of cockerels who are then wound up to attack and kill one another as spectators bet on the outcome.
The League Against Cruel Sports said: 'Cockfighting is a cruel blood sport that entails a huge amount of animal cruelty and suffering, and which was thankfully outlawed nearly 200 years ago in the UK.
'AFC Bournemouth should do the right thing and disassociate themselves from the brutal world of animal fighting and drop any links to businesses that promote this savagery.'
The claims first emerged earlier this week in an article by Josimar Football.
It found that a bj88 branded website features graphic videos of live cockfights, with links to bj88's Vietnamese homepages, which offer the opportunity to bet on cockfighting.
While Bournemouth did not respond publicly to the allegations made in the article, sources say the club claimed it paid for due diligence to be done by a professional company, which found no issues.
But simple searches of the internet and social media find web pages which appear to be linked to bj88 that explain the rules of cock-fighting and describe it as a 'blend of strategy, skill and excitement'.
In a statement, AFC Bournemouth supporters organisation The Cherries Trust said: 'The club has advised us that the [original] article contains many falsehoods and we would urge them to come out publicly and explain their understanding of BJ88's activities and why they remain comfortable for them to be our front of shirt sponsor for the next two seasons.'
Two birds pictured fighting each other in a cock fight in Thailand. There is no suggestion that this particular event was connected in any way to bj88
One club source said bj88 were consulting solicitors about the matter, as the domain and host country for the cockfighting website is different to their own.
It is believed they will claim their website was copied by criminal gangs and that the cock-fighting odds offer isn't anything to do with them.