Taking flight: Emirates and PSG to part ways
November 12 – Qatari-owned Paris Saint-Germain and UAE-owned Emirates Airline will part ways at the end of their sponsorship contract next year.
Football Marketing
Chinese payment platform Alipay buys into UEFA’s national team competitions
November 12 – UEFA has secured more than €200 million after signing a deal with Chinese online payments platform Alipay to become a major sponsor of its national team competitions.
Sunderland ‘Till I Die – the power and the glory, forever and ever, a football fan (a Netflix original)
November 7 – Netflix might finally have understood what it means to be a football fan. Rather than another sycophantic love-in with one of the world’s big money club, the producer-come-streaming service has invested in the far grittier story of Sunderland’s disastrous fall from grace into the third tier of English football.
Liverpool extend Kunming, China, coaching partnership
November 7 – Premier League Liverpool has extended its youth coaching partnership in the southwest Chinese city of Kunming with Kunming Municipal Bureau of Education.
Barça double Chinese academys to six with Yunnan Baiyao partnership
November 7 – Barcelona have entered into a three-year regional sponsorship deal with Chinese pharmaceutical brand Yunnan Baiyao with a focus being the opening of three Barça Academys.
Adidas and Real Madrid close in on €1.1bn sponsorship renewal
November 6 – Reports from Spain indicate Real Madrid are on the verge of signing a €1.1 billion sponsorship renewal with Adidas.
Bayern target Latin America with Spanish-language online shop
November 5 – Bayern Munich has taken a deeper step into the Spanish-speaking Latin American market with the launch of a Spanish language online shop.
Relevant and LaLiga launch fan petition to bring Girona vs Barca league match to Miami
November 1 – The much-publicised overseas La Liga game between Girona and Barcelona, which FIFA have insisted cannot go ahead in Miami in January, has taken another twist with US fans being asked to sign a petition in favour of the ground-breaking fixture.
Conmebol lands Qatar Airways as its first airline sponsor for club competitions
November 1 – Qatar Airways has become the Official Global Airline Partner of South American confederation Conmebol’s club competitions with immediate effect. The deal will last 4.5 years, taking them through the Qatar 2022 World Cup.
Coffee break: Lavazza takes over at Anfield with exclusive Liverpool deal
November 1 – Liverpool have added the Lavazza Group as the club’s official coffee partner in the UK. The deal will see Lavazza become the exclusive coffee at the Anfield Stadium.
Man United keeps sponsor roster healthy with Canon Medical renewal
November 1 – Manchester United have renewed their partnership with Canon Medical Systems Europe as the club’s Official Medical Systems Partner. The agreement was first signed in 2013.
AFC and DDMC Fortis sign off on $3.4bn rights deal
By Paul Nicholson
October 29 – Ink has gone to paper on the most significant commercial rights deal in international football this year with the Asian Football Confederation and DDMC Fortis signing off on an eight-year partnership with a minimum guarantee reported to be around $3.4 billion.
Bundesliga trio build on trade links in China with Jiangsu collaboration
October 29 – The collective German football focus on cracking the Chinese market has seen Borussia Mönchengladbach, Borussia Dortmund and FC Schalke 04, from North Rhine-Westphalia sign a collaboration partnership with Jiangsu Football Association following a trade mission organised by the German regional government.
England legend Glenn Hoddle saved on set by rapid response sound man
October 29 – Former England manager Glenn Hoddle is “responding well” to treatment in hospital after having suffered a heart attack on Saturday.
UEFA opens up Women’s Football sponsor categories for 2018-21 cycle
October 26 – UEFA has gone to market with a new set of sponsorship categories for its Women’s Football properties for the 2018-2021 cycle.