English top-flight soccer club Newcastle United have announced ecommerce platform Noon as their new sleeve partner for the 2022/23 season.
The value of the deal has not been disclosed, but soccer finance expert Kieran Maguire reports Newcastle had set an asking price of UK£7.5 million (US$9.2 million) a year for the inventory. Currently, sleeve partnerships for Premier League clubs outside the ‘big six’ are typically worth between UK£500,000 (US$614,000) and UK£2 million (US$2.5 million) per season.
Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), Newcastle’s majority owner, is a significant backer of Riyadh-based Noon, which bills itself as the Middle East’s leading online shopping destination. The new deal replaces Kayak after the travel search engine’s agreement expired at the end of 2021/22.
Newcastle said the latest tie-up will provide the club with new ways to engage with fans in the Middle East, with supporters in the region able to pre-order all 2022/23 Newcastle United kits on Noon.
In addition to sleeve branding, Noon will have a presence on matchdays at St James’ Park stadium and across Newcastle’s digital assets.
“Noon.com is a hugely successful and influential brand in the Middle East and we are very pleased to team up to offer supporters in the region with new ways to engage with the club,” said Dale Aitchison, head of commercial partnerships at Newcastle United.
“One way we can achieve that is by creating a fast, efficient and effective way for fans in the region to order official Newcastle United merchandise, and we are delighted fans can utilise Noon.com to proudly wear their kits for the new season.”
Ali Kafil-Hussain, chief of staff at Noon.com, added: “We are extremely proud to become a key strategic partner of Newcastle United, one of the most famous clubs in world football.
“We look forward to working with Newcastle United as a club with a strong sense of community and a vibrant history.”
Earlier this month, the I reported Newcastle were looking to secure a more lucrative front-of-shirt sponsor from the 2023/24 campaign after negotiating an early release from their contract with Chinese sports betting brand Fun88. There has been speculation that the club will seek a deal with a large Saudi company such as the Saudia airline or energy firm Aramco.
On the surface, Newcastle’s pact with Noon looks to have handed the club a far larger fee for their sleeve sponsorship inventory. There is much more to unpack, however.
Noon was founded by Emirati businessman Mohamed Alabbar and the company is now part-owned by PIF, Newcastle’s majority stakeholder, after landing investment from the sovereign wealth fund.
The deal is, of course, legal. But concerns over the proximity of the Saudi Arabian government to Newcastle persist, despite the Premier League receiving ‘legally binding assurances’ that the kingdom would not effectively own the club.
A new front-of-shirt deal with a state-backed Saudi company would only prompt further questions. The release of Newcastle’s third kit this week has hardly helped matters either. The white with green trim colour scheme just so happens to be the same as the Saudi national team. Pictures of the kit had been leaked in May, prompting Amnesty International to deem it as “clear evidence” of sportswashing by the Gulf regime.