Schalke 04 extends partnership with Gazprom

23 November 2009 | Posted in Sponsorship, Soccer | By Adam Fraser

German soccer club Schalke 04 has signed a new sponsorship agreement with Gazprom putting it on a similar level to English giants Manchester United and Liverpool in terms of main sponsor support, trailing only Bayern Munich and Real Madrid in Europe. The deal, worth a reported €100 million (US$150 million) over the next five years, comes just days after German giants Bayern signed a US$112 million, three-year partnership with Deutsche Telekom.

The US$30 million annual fee is an almost identical fee to that received by Manchester United under the terms of their contract with Aon and Liverpool under the terms of their deal with Standard Chartered, and puts Schalke in the pack of clubs closest behind Real Madrid's sponsorship with Bwin - despite the German club's relative lack of success compared to the other names on that list.

"We have closed the deal for the next five years," Clemens Toennies, chairman of Schalke's advisory board, told German newspaper Bild. "It will improve conditions for us and I explained that on my last trip to Moscow, because this deal will help stabilise the club."

• German soccer club Schalke leads the way

The US$150 million payments will be increased if Schalke win the Bundesliga or the Uefa Champions League. Schalke are currently third in the league table, two points from the top, and unbeaten since September.