Emirates Airlines formalizes partnership agreement with Bayern Munich football club
Football powerhouse Bayern Munich has expanded its portfolio of sponsors, announcing a new partnership with Emirates, the United Arab Emirates' flagship airline. This partnership, similar to Bayern's deal with Visit Rwanda, encompasses pitchside advertising and joint activations on social and digital channels.
Emirates, known for its extensive sports sponsorships, has also partnered with AC Milan, Benfica Lisbon, and Al Ain FC, in addition to Arsenal, Real Madrid, and Lyon. The airline holds naming rights for Arsenal's Emirates Stadium and is the title sponsor of the English FA Cup.
Bayern Munich's deputy chairman, Michael Diederich, highlighted the financial advantages of the Emirates partnership. The deal is estimated to be worth €5 million ($5.8 million) annually to Bayern Munich, placing Emirates in the "platinum" tier just beneath the club's main partners.
Not everyone is pleased with this new partnership. Michael Ott, a German lawyer who led fan protests against the Qatar Airways sponsorship, expressed his disappointment. He believes that the Qatar deal wasn't ended due to a shift in the mindset of Bayern officials but because Qatar didn't want to continue the sponsorship.
The UAE's human rights record has been under scrutiny, with reports of prolonged solitary confinement against prisoners in the mass trial of Emirati dissidents. Amnesty International's 2024 report criticizes the UAE for criminalizing the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly.
Despite these concerns, Bayern Munich is pleased to have gained a strong and shining partner in Emirates, which has been a committed supporter of club football in Europe for decades. The airline has deals in many other sports and was previously a shirt sponsor for Hamburg in the Bundesliga.
Bayern Munich's main partners include German firms Adidas, Allianz, and Audi, who each own a stake in the club, along with Deutsche Telekom. The club recently spent €70 million on signing Colombian forward Luis Diaz from Liverpool, a move that is expected to strengthen their squad for the upcoming season.
It's important to note that unlike the deal with Rwanda, Bayern Munich makes no mention of any football academy in the UAE. The UAE, however, has strong economic relations with Israel amid the armed conflict in Gaza.
As Bayern Munich moves forward with this new partnership, it will be interesting to see how the club navigates the complexities of international politics and human rights concerns. The football world will be watching closely.
