Inter Milan set to sign lucrative sponsorship with Etihad Airways

Inter Milan have been sponsored by tire company Pirelli for the past 20 years. It was one of the more quaint club-sponsor relationships, since Pirelli is based in the city of Milan. With that being said, due to Inter’s recent lack of success on the pitch, the relationship grew a bit strained. Things got to the point where Pirelli threatened to pull their sponsorship if Inter failed to qualify for European competition.

Inter just about managed to make it into UEFA’s Europa League for this season, but their sponsor relationship with Pirelli is reportedly coming to a close anyway. The ever-reliable crew at Footy Headlines is reporting that Inter is set to sign a huge sponsorship deal with Etihad Airways.

Here’s the juicy bit from their report:

The deal would more than double the current contract Inter has with Pirelli (€12 million / year), the Milan-based company that has been Inter’s shirt sponsor since 1995. Etihad Airways already sponsors several other high-profile football clubs including Manchester City.
As the current Inter Pirelli jersey sponsorship contract is due to expire after the current season, Etihad’s reign would commence with the 2016-17 season.
The €25 million the new Inter shirt sponsorship deal is expected to be worth would make it the highest-valued in the whole of Serie A, ahead of Sassuolo (Mapei, €22 million / year) and Juventus and Milan, who both receive around €17 million a year from Jeep and Emirates, respectively.

First off, I’m kind of shocked that of all the teams in Italy, Sassuolo currently has the most lucrative sponsorship deal. Secondly, it’s going to be a bit of a bummer to see this end. You rarely ever see local sponsorships in big-time soccer these days, and seeing Pirelli’s logo on the classic black-and-blue shirt just felt right. It’ll take a while for fans to get used to seeing a new name on the shirt, but Inter will probbaly enjoy counting the cash from their new sponsors.

What do you think, though? Are you going to miss seeing Pirelli on the Inter Milan shirt?