You can’t always get what you want. But if you try sometimes, you just might find your band’s logo on the front of the jerseys of one of the world’s biggest football clubs in a match against their fiercest rivals.
Spanish La Liga giants FC Barcelona announced on Thursday, October 19, that, as part of their ongoing sponsorship deal with Spotify, the iconic tongue-and-lips logo of legendary British band the Rolling Stones will appear on the front of their jerseys when they play Real Madrid in the first El Clásico of the 2023-24 season on Saturday, October 28.
The Stones’ logo will appear on Barça’s jerseys just after the band’s first album of new material in 18 years, “Hackney Diamonds,” is released on October 20. The band will also offer a special blaugrana vinyl edition of the album on their website, with the Barça crest and tongue-and-lips logo printed on the LP and packaged with a retro Barça jersey inspired by the fashion of the early 1960s, when the Stones were formed.
The Rolling Stones’ iconic sound has been the backdrop for listeners worldwide on Spotify, soundtracking the lives of fans near and far, young and old, which more than justifies them featuring on the Barça jersey.
— FCBarcelona.com
Barça’s women’s team will also sport the Stones’ logo when they play Sevilla FC in Liga F action on Sunday, November 5.
To celebrate, Spotify has created a a new “Matchday Playlist” that features classic Rolling Stones tracks along with other songs.
“We’re huge football fans and honoured that Spotify have brought our Tongue & Lips logo to grace the FC Barcelona shirt to celebrate the release of the Stones’ new ‘Hackney Diamonds’ album. We’ll be cheering on the players on the pitch as well as fans around the world who will be tuning in to watch this iconic match.”
— Statement from the Rolling Stones on FCBarcelona.com
As part of their Spotify deal, Barça wore the logos of rapper Drake and of Spanish singer Rosalía’s 2022 album, “Motomami,” on their shirts in El Clásico matches last season.
Jerseys featuring the Rolling Stones’ logo will be available to the public in very limited quantities. A batch of just 1,899 jerseys will go on sale October 23, along with 22 signed jerseys, one signed by each of the starting players in El Clásico and the Liga F match against Sevilla FC. A limited-edition lifestyle range of T-shirts, bucket hats, hoodies and other merchandise featuring both the Barça crest and the tongue-and-lips logo will also go on sale October 23.