PokerStars and Paddy Power have united to become the new official sponsors of the Irish Poker Open, which is to take place from April 3-10, 2023, at the RDS Ballsbridge Dublin.
This will see each brand promote the event, with the tournament live streamed on the platform of each as well as PokerStars and the Flutter Entertainment entity also featuring online satellites to mirror the former’s European Poker Tour events.
Paul O’Reilly and JP McCann, CEOs of The Irish Poker Open, explained: “We are very proud to announce PokerStars and Paddy Power as the official sponsors of The Irish Poker Open and we are looking forward to bringing our players another epic Irish Open Poker Festival, whilst welcoming new players from around the globe.
“We have exciting plans in place for the growth of The Irish Poker Open, Europe’s longest running poker festival, and we believe, with PokerStars and Paddy Power as the new sponsors this aligns perfectly with our vision for the growth of The Irish Poker Open over the coming years. This can only be a great thing for players.”
The tournament itself will feature a main event guarantee of €1m. PokerStars will also run an online Irish Poker Open series ahead of the event, further details of which will be shared in due course.
Kevin Harrington, Chief Commercial Officer at PokerStars, noted: “Ireland is the home of Flutter and we are truly delighted to partner with the already well-loved Open, and work with our colleagues at Paddy Power and The Irish Poker Open to make this a very special event for all our players, not only for those in Ireland but for players from across the world.”
A Spokesperson for Paddy Power added: “Paddy Power have over a decade of heritage as former sponsors of The Irish Poker Open, so the opportunity to make a comeback bigger than Boris Johnson (we could tell he was bluffing) by going all in with our colleagues in Flutter made us royally flush with excitement.
“By the very nature of its warm hospitality, Dublin – which bears a remarkable resemblance to Vegas if you crank up the central heating – always attracts a full house.
“And we’re at full tilt with plans to ensure the 2023 Irish Poker Open is the greatest poker tournament Europe has ever witnessed. On a more personal note, I’ve vowed to brush up on my poker puns before we return to the table.”