Sponsorship has long been a part of the football world, creating sizable investment opportunities for companies across many sectors. The world’s first recorded sponsor of the famous football shirt was at German club Eintracht Braunschweig in 1955. Partnering with local alcohol brand Jägermeister, this paved the way for vast lucrative potential as clubs across the globe would begin to follow suit.
Since the turn of the century, the business of football has exploded into a significant global industry, with sponsorship deals reaching into the multi-millions. One industry in particular which has become renowned in association with football sponsorship is the airline industry.
Endorsement opportunity has emerged in many different forms, from national leagues and teams to club partnerships and international tournaments. A report by Global Data identified in 2023 that more than half of the airline sector’s estimated $1 billion spend on sport sponsorship that year went to football.
As of mid-2024, here are the ten biggest airline sponsorship deals in football.
1. Qatar Airways and Paris Saint-Germain – $80m
In 2022, Qatar Airways set a record across all sport shirt sponsorships with a minimum 5-year contract with the current three-time champion of France’s “Ligue 1”, Paris Saint-Germain. This deal followed an established partnership as the official airline of PSG two years prior in 2020.
The deal also establishes Doha’s Hamad International Airport as the club’s official airport along with Qatar Duty Free (QDF) as the official duty free. The collaboration has also promised to bring more engaging content to PSG fans as well as official fan travel packages to Paris. The sponsorship is expected to be worth $400m by 2027.
2. Emirates Airlines and Real Madrid – $68.1m-$70m
Despite Qatar leading, Emirates Airlines has been sponsoring football for decades and currently has contracts spanning across half of the top 10 football sponsorships. One of their longstanding partnerships is with Spanish club giants, Real Madrid. It began in 2011 for $5m a year and was renewed in 2022 until 2026, now tallying an estimated value of $60-70m.
3. Etihad Airways and Manchester City – $68m
Etihad Airways has gradually developed its relationship with the English club, beginning in 2009 as the official shirt sponsor. Since then, the partnership has amassed to a value of $800m, largely due to the renaming of Man City’s stadium and official training ground.
4. Emirates Airlines and Arsenal – $64m
Perhaps the most widely associated Emirates sponsorship, Arsenal first began their collaboration with the airline back in 2004. As of 2023, the annual commitment rose from $50m to $64m until 2028, upping the expected total value to over $300m and making this the longest standing Premier League shirt sponsorship.
5. Riyadh Air and Atletico Madrid – $43.9m
A new airline player from the Middle East came into the picture in 2023 when Riyadh Air from Saudi Arabia announced their front-of-shirt takeover of Madrid rival, Atletico. The partnership marks Riyadh Air’s first sponsorship deal and seems to be a strategic move in imprinting the new airline in the minds of football fans considering it will only begin flying in 2025.
6. Emirates Airlines and AC Milan – $32m
AC Milan is Emirates’ largest deal with an Italian club, beginning their journey together in 2007. The contract was extended in 2022 until 2029 meaning the iconic “Fly Better” logo will be visible on the club jersey for over twenty years. The same applies to youth teams.
7. Emirates Airlines and Olympique Lyonnais – $21.7m
While Qatar Airways secured PSG in 2020, Emirates signed the same year with another top French team, Olympique Lyonnais, on a five-year contract worth a total of $110m.
8. Emirates Airlines and Benfica – $12.5m
Emirates entered Portugal’s Primeira Liga in 2015 by closing a deal with the record holder for the country’s longest unbeaten Portuguese champions, Benfica. The partnership is set to renew this year.
9. Lufthansa and Germany’s National Team – $4m
Since 2005, Germany’s flag airline carrier, Lufthansa, has partnered with the national team to fly the players and staff to games around the world. The contract is currently ongoing until 2026 but, in the meantime, the airline has acquired publicity privileges to promote during this summer’s UEFA European Championship.
10. Iberia and Spain’s National Team – $4m
Spain’s flagship airline, Iberia, became the official airline of the Spanish men’s and women’s teams in 2018, following sponsorship of the Royal Spanish Football Federation.
The initial three-year agreement was successfully extended until 2026 with expectations to continue beyond given that Spain will co-host the 2030 FIFA World Cup. The collaboration now amasses to $26m.
