Oct. 2 (Bloomberg) -- The Dutch Open tennis tournament may be sold or moved outside the Netherlands after failing to attract a sponsor, its director said.

Krijco, a Dutch casino that's supported the event since 2002, dropped out because a change in law meant it would pay higher taxes, Hans Felius said today. The current credit crisis ``hadn't made it any easier'' to attract sponsors, he added.

``It's a shame,'' Felius said by phone from the tournament site in Amersfoort, about 55 kilometers (34 miles) southeast of Amsterdam. ``Public interest in the Dutch Open has been waning, and we just haven't been able to find a sponsor who is willing to take on this kind of deal.''

The credit crunch may be starting to squeeze sports marketing, affecting English soccer clubs, Formula One auto racing and the U.S. PGA Tour. Banks, insurers and other major sponsors are holding on to their cash and cutting costs to survive.

The lack of a sponsor may mean the clay-court tournament will move countries. Felius said he was in talks with the family of Australian Open winner Novak Djokovic, his father Srdjan and uncle Goran Djokovic about selling or leasing the license to the Serbians, who would use it to organize an event in Belgrade. Third-ranked Djokovic won his first ATP Tour title at the Dutch Open in 2006 as a 19-year-old.

Felius said his costs may increase 20 percent to about 3 million euros ($4.2 million) next year, meaning the competition needs about 1 million euros from sponsors to keep it running. Krijco had covered the losses since 2006, and dropped its sponsorship this year, he said.

Laver, Drysdale

The competition, which was won by Spaniard Albert Montanes last year, is moving to the first week of May from July to be a tune-up match for the French Open. Ticket sales in recent years have been slow because of a lack of top Dutch players, Felius said.

The 50-year-old event was originally held in Amsterdam, and includes Rod Laver, Cliff Drysdale and Guillermo Vilas among its previous champions.

The credit crunch is eating into sports marketing budgets. Several English Premier League soccer teams have found their shirt sponsorships in limbo. Newcastle players wear the logo of Northern Rock Plc, a U.K. mortgage-lender that was nationalized in February; West Ham lost XL Leisure Group Plc last month when the tour operator grounded all its flights because it ran out of money; and West Bromwich Albion was unable to land a shirt sponsor after being promoted from the second-tier Championship.

Lehman Effect

The rugby teams of Oxford and Cambridge universities got caught up when Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., the main sponsor for their annual Varsity Match collapsed last month. While the 127th game will go ahead on Dec. 11, the Lehman money was to be split between the universities' rugby clubs, helping to fund equipment, coaches, medical support and transport.

Last month, U.S. PGA Commissioner Tim Finchem said financial problems on Wall Street are a ``major concern'' to the tour. Golf tournament sponsors include Wachovia Corp. and Morgan Stanley.

Formula One Management president Bernie Ecclestone said last month that his organization is trying to anticipate the effect of the credit crisis. Already, it's had one direct impact. Lehman owns a 16.8 percent stake in the sport's holding company.

To contact the reporter on this story: Danielle Rossingh in London at drossingh@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: October 2, 2008 13:46 EDT