Spanish giants Barcelona have announced that Qatar Airways will become their shirt sponsor for the next two seasons.
The national airline of the Gulf Kingdom will replace Qatar Foundation on Barca’s shirt from the 2013-14 campaign accordance to the record-breaking five-year deal it signed with Qatar Sports Investments in 2010.
That €150million deal, the first of its kind in the club’s history, allowed for a change in the sponsor after the third season, an option that has now been exercised.
Barca president Sandro Rosell was quick to give his blessing to the development, calling Qatar Airways “an ambitious brand with global aspirations, always committed to achieving the utmost excellence in its field. These are objectives with which FC Barcelona fully identifies.”
Rosell also confirmed that the agreement will not see the end of Barcelona’s association with the Qatar Foundation.
“After sharing two fantastic years with Qatar Foundation, we are delighted to be continuing our relationship by welcoming them as our official Human Development Partner”, he said.
Real Madrid are set to follow Barca’s lead with a five-year shirt sponsorship deal with Dubai’s Emirates Airlines expected to be announced shortly, Sport360° understands.
Talks between both parties have been ongoing for a number of months with Emirates keen on replacing Austrian betting firm, Bwin, who have been the club’s title sponsor since 2007.
It is believed Emirates are willing to pay in excess of €25million a year for the honour of adorning Madrid’s famed white shirt. However, claims they were also interested on acquiring the naming rights of Madrid’s iconic Santiago Bernabeu stadium have been dismissed.
Boutros Boutros, divisional senior vice-president for corporate communications, recently told Sport360°: “We have a very good relationship with Real Madrid and proud to have the Fly Emirates name associated with them.
“We are in talks about other sponsorship possibilities, but we have not discussed the stadium.”
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