It has been rumoured for a few months now and finally it seems it is going to happen. Emirates Airlines, is now heading to Spain. It is being reported that Emirates Airline is set to sign a shirt sponsorship deal with Real Madrid worth up to €30 million-a-year.
The deal is still being negotiated and is expected to be signed in the next three to four weeks. The deal with their current shirt sponsor, bwin, ends with the 2012/13 season and “Fly Emirates” may be seen on the Real Madrid shirts for the next four to six years.
An undisclosed official told the Wall Street Journal:
“We are signing in a few weeks time.
“Sports sponsorship has worked well for us. The beauty of sponsorship is that it is exclusive.”
The official also said that this sponsorship will not affect the deals with other teams around Europe. Emirates already have an agreement with Real Madrid to advertise on the signboards at the Santiago Bernebeu stadium and some hospitality rights. The Middle Eastern airline also holds shirt sponsorship deals with Premier League club Arsenal, Ligue 1 club PSG and Serie A giants AC Milan.
Football is not the only sports Emirates are interested in. Earlier this year in February, the airline signed a five-year deal with motorsport company Formula One World – the deal is said to be worth upwards of €7.5 million.
At the time, the chairman and the chief executive of Emirates Airline, Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, told reporters in Dubai that the total sponsorship spending by the airline this year would be about one billion UAE Dirhams (~ €208.3 million)
The local Spanish media first reported the deal between Real Madrid and Emirates Airline on Friday.
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