The apex body of football in Europe, the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) has announced a partnership extension with the American multinational financial services corporation, Mastercard.
The new deal has been renewed for the top-tier UEFA Champions League (UCL) for the 2024–27 commercial cycle.
The arrangement, which comes after UEFA and Mastercard celebrated 30 years of partnership, involves sponsorship rights for the UEFA Super Cup annual one-off match in 2024, 2025, and 2026. These are in addition to the 2024–25, 2025–26, and 2026–27 UCL seasons.
The prior agreement between Mastercard and UEFA ran from October 2020 to April 2024 and covered the UCL cycle. According to reports, this deal will be worth slightly more than $170 million for each of the three seasons.
Mastercard cardholders will be able to participate in contests to win fan experiences as part of the new partnership. Moreover, Mastercard will also offer kids the chance to be player mascots and will keep collaborating with the UEFA Foundation for Children on various projects.
Guy-Laurent Epstein, UEFA Marketing Director, said, “We’re delighted to extend our partnership with Mastercard until 2027. For over three decades, Mastercard has been an unwavering supporter of the UEFA Champions League, bringing fans and cardholders priceless moments and unparalleled experiences. Entering this new era of UEFA men’s club competitions, we’re excited to continue this extraordinary journey together, one of the longest-standing partnerships in world football.”
Raja Rajamannar, Chief Marketing and Communications Officer of Mastercard, said, “As a proud sponsor of the UEFA Champions League for 30 years, we have helped create incredible experiences on and off the pitch and witnessed the intense passion that fans have for this competition.”
The agreement comes after Heineken, Pepsi, and Just Eat Takeaway.com also decided to sponsor the UCL for the 2024–2027 season. Team Marketing, UEFA’s partnership agency for these competitions, handles the sales of all sponsorship and media rights related to the club competitions.