Barcelona Fans Could Have Cost Club Millions In Lucrative Spotify Sponsorship Deal

Barcelona's fanbase could have cost the club millions in the impending Spotify sponsorship deal.

The Blaugrana's contract with current main sponsors, Rakuten, the electronic commerce company, will expire in six months.

The link with Beko, whose name is emblazoned on training kits, is also up at the end of the season.

But it's widely reported that Barca have agreed a €280 million with music streaming giants Spotify.

The Swedish company, who have yet to sponsor a football team, will be front and centre of their shirts going forward - as well as on the back of the training kit.

It's a huge deal for Barca, who have had their fair share of financial problems in recent times.

However, according to SPORT, the partnership promised to be even more lucrative at first.

In talks with Barca, Spotify were keen to know about Barca's fanbase and particularly "registered" supporters who had consented to personal information being used.

But of the 350 million fans around the world, just 1 per cent had agreed for the club to access their name, phone number and email.

The report states this discovery had an impact on the deal. Had it been higher, Barca would have been able to negotiate even better terms with Spotify.

Barca went without an official shirt sponsor for a long time before striking a partnership with the charity 'UNICEF' in 2006.

They have since been sponsored by Qatar Airways and later Rakuten.

As well as the shirt deal, Barca and Spotify are also reportedly still negotiating a potential rebranding of the Nou Camp stadium.

Barcelona are said to be ready to sell the naming rights to their iconic home ground. Spotify's preference is to have the title rights for a ‘relatively short period of time’ - though the Catalan outfit are prepared to budge their usual commercial terms.

Speaking about linking up with Spotify last month, Barca president Joan Laporta said: "Everything is going quite well and the agreement will be announced when we sign the contract with Spotify, yes, we will have to approve the agreement in an extraordinary assembly of delegates.

“We think it is the best option, it links us to music, hopefully it will come out as soon as possible.”

Featured Image Credit: Image: PA

Topics: Barcelona, La Liga

Josh Lawless

Josh is a sports journalist who specialises in football and wrestling. He has been published by Curzon Ashton FC, Late Tackle, Manchester City FC, The Mirror, Read Man City and Manchester Evening News. He provides coverage of professional wrestling and has interviewed some of the biggest names in the field - including the first UK interview with The Hardy Boyz after their return to WWE. He has never sported a pair of Lonsdale Slip-ons, contrary to reports.

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