World Poker Tour
Michelob AmberBock Signs on as Official WORLD POKER TOUR® Sponsor
AmberBock to Stage "Go All-In Texas Hold 'em Tournament" In Select Markets,
With Two Winners Earning a Seat at the WORLD POKER TOURTM Invitational Celebrity
Pro-Am
West Hollywood, CA (January 24, 2005) - WPT Enterprises,
Inc. (NASDAQ: WPTE) announced today that Anheuser-Busch's Michelob AmberBock
will sponsor Season Three of the WORLD POKER TOUR® (WPT) on
the Travel Channel, becoming the official beer sponsor of the WPT. The
brand made its sponsorship debut last month on the WPT Ladies' Night
II special, which aired on the Travel Channel. "The WPT has attracted
millions of new fans to the sport of poker-both as participants and as viewers,"
said Peter McLoughlin, Vice President, Corporate Media, Anheuser-Busch, Inc.
"We want Michelob AmberBock to be the beverage they enjoy while they play at
home or root for their favorite players as they 'go all-in' on the weekly telecasts."
The sponsorship enables Michelob AmberBock to capitalize on an audience that
already reached 25 million unique viewers last season. The WORLD POKER TOUR,
which reinvented poker as a televised spectator sport, will broadcast tournaments
filmed at leading casinos from Las Vegas to New Jersey, beginning with the launch
of its Third Season on March 2, 2005. Airing every Wednesday night at 9 p.m.
ET/PT on The Travel Channel, the WPT is the highest-rated series in the
network's history.
Anheuser-Busch's Michelob AmberBock television spots will air on all of Season
Three's Travel Channel broadcasts. Additionally, viewers will see the AmberBock
logo on the televised table felt and on in-show graphics for the WPT's
popular "hole card camera" segment. The winners of each WPT tournament
will celebrate a toast with Michelob AmberBock as part of the WPT's traditional
closing sequence. Where legal, Michelob AmberBock will support the sponsorship
with retail promotions which began in December and will run through February
24 with a "Go All-In Texas Hold'em" tournament, to feature a shortened elimination
version of Texas Hold'em. Players will begin each round with an equal number
of chips and play until they "bust out." Only the top chip winners will progress
to the next round. Players will not pay or purchase anything to play at any
level of the tournament. The top two players at the National Finals will secure
coveted seats in the WPT Invitational, the WORLD POKER TOUR'S
celebrity pro-am tournament boasting 300 players vying for a $200,000 prize
pool. Last year, skilled celebrities such as Ben Affleck, James Woods, and Tobey
Maguire joined the roster of WPT tournament winners and leading pros.
The sponsorship agreement was hailed by WPT's Executive Vice President,
Audrey Kania. "Anheuser-Busch is the preeminent beer brewer and the WORLD
POKER TOUR has clearly established itself as the leading force in poker.
This association provides a further springboard for our mutual growth and success,"
stated Kania. Using poker jargon, Kania added, "Securing Anheuser-Busch as our
first sponsor is like hitting a Royal Flush on the 'river.' It can't get much
better."
WPT Information Page
ABOUT WPT ENTERPRISES, INC.
WPT Enterprises, Inc. (Nasdaq: WPTE) is a media and entertainment company engaged
in the creation of branded entertainment through the development, production
and marketing of televised programming based on poker and other gaming themes.
To date, operations have principally revolved around the creation of the World
Poker Tour brand through the production and licensing of a reality television
series exhibited on the Travel Channel that is based on a circuit of previously-established
high-stakes poker tournaments that has been affiliated under the "World Poker
Tour" brand. WPT Enterprises, Inc. is a majority owned subsidiary of Lakes Entertainment,
Inc. (Nasdaq: LACO). Photos and media information can be found online at: www.worldpokertour.com
ABOUT ANHEUSER-BUSCH
Based in St. Louis, Anheuser-Busch Cos. Inc. is the leading U.S. brewer and
holds a 50 percent share in Grupo Modelo, Mexico's leading brewer. In a survey
of 10,000 business leaders and securities analysts, Anheuser-Busch ranked first
overall in quality of products and services among nearly 600 companies researched
in FORTUNE magazine's 2004 "America's Most Admired Companies" listing. The company
also is one of the largest theme park operators in the United States, is a major
manufacturer of aluminum cans and is the world's largest recycler of aluminum
beverage containers. For more information, visit www.anheuser-busch.com
or www.amberbock.com.
More Press Releases | Previous
Press Release | WPT Information Page