Marseille’s sponsorship agreement with Orange SA expires at end of current season. Getty Images French soccer club Marseille have been linked with a possible sponsorship deal with airline giant Emirates. According to Bloomberg, Marseille are viewed as an alternative sponsorship candidate, with the report coming amid speculation that Ligue 1 champions Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) are set to sever ties with the Dubai-based airline at the end of the 2018/19 season. Emirates has been the front-of-shirt partner for the Qatar Sports Investments-owned club since 2006 but deal has also become an uncomfortable fit since the UAE joined three other Gulf states in imposing a trade and travel embargo on Qatar last year, accusing the country of supporting terrorism. Value also appears to be a sticking point. According to a L’Equipe report, PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi wanted as much as €80 million (US$93 million) per year for the club’s new shirt sponsorship agreement, a demand that Emirates were not willing to meet. Marseille’s current shirt sponsor is French telco Orange SA, whose deal with the nine-time domestic champions expires at the end of the current season. Based on France’s south coast, Marseille have been owned by US businessman Frank McCourt since 2016, when the former owner of Major Leagtue Baseball’s (MLB) Los Angeles Dodgers purchased the French outfit for US$42.5 million. A spokesperson for Marseille declined to comment on any negotiations when questioned by Bloomberg. Marseille have a longstanding partnership with Orange, with the telecommunications company having first teamed up with the club in 1999. In 2016, Orange acquired the naming rights to Marseille’s Stade Velodrome stadium in a ten-year deal worth US$3.07 million per year. On the field, Marseille – managed by former Roma boss Rudi Garcia – sit sixth in Ligue 1, already stranded 17 points behind PSG, who have won all of their first 13 fixtures.
France's Olympique de Marseille is reportedly set to sign a shirt sponsorship deal with airline Emirates, according to Bloomberg. The rumours arrive following reports that Orange winner Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) will drop sponsorship with the Dubai airline at the end of the current season. The deal with Qatar Sports Investments-owned PSG has been somewhat uncomfortable since the UAE and three other Gulf states imposed a travel and trade embargo on Qatar last year, accusing it of backing terrorism. Marseille's current shirt sponsor is French telecoms company Ligue 1, but the deal expires at the end of the 2018/19 season.