Chelsea rubber stamp new €275 million shirt sponsorship deal

The Japanese tyre firm Yokohama Rubber is to become Chelsea’s new shirt sponsor in a deal believed to be worth €275 million, making it the second most lucrative in Premier League history. The deal, effective from next season, is second only to the €73 million a year that Chevrolet pay Manchester United and is more than double the Stamford Bridge club’s previous contract with Samsung.

Since the advent of Uefa’s financial fair play rules, commercial and broadcasting income has become disproportionately important as clubs seek to balance the books and grow their global brand.

Shirt sponsorship

Neither Chelsea nor Yokohama Rubber would confirm the figures involved but the five-year deal is believed to be worth around €55 million per year. The deal will see Chelsea leapfrog Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester City in terms of shirt sponsorship revenues and will be seen as a coup for Christian Purslow, the former Liverpool managing director who was appointed last year to seek new commercial deals.

The tyre brand, which sponsors the NBA teams Boston Celtics and San Antonio Spurs was first rumoured to be in negotiations with Chelsea last month after a prospective deal with Turkish Airlines collapsed.

“We believe that Yokohama will play a key role in helping us drive our global expansion in international markets such as the US, where they have operated with distinction for many years,” said Chelsea chairman, Bruce Buck.

“Also, of course, Chelsea having such an esteemed and historic Japanese company as our partner enables us to accelerate our development in their home market too.”

News of the Chelsea deal came as a new report from Repucom showed that Premier League clubs had seen revenue from shirt sponsorship rise by 36 per cent on last season, largely driven by Manchester United’s deal. The study showed that the rise in shirt sponsorship revenues had been driven by increased interest from overseas, particularly the Middle East and Asia. Three-quarters of shirt sponsors in the top flight are from overseas.

Chelsea have in recent seasons attempted to follow the lead set by Manchester United in building a portfolio of overseas sponsors in a range of different categories. Chelsea said the deal with Yokohama would launch the club “into a new era of innovative commercial partnerships”. Guardian Service