Why Inter Milan DIDN'T have a shirt sponsor against AC Milan
Inter Milan DIDN'T have a shirt sponsor for their big Champions League clash against AC Milan and here's why.
Inter beat arch rivals AC Milan 2-0 in their semi-final first leg tie on Tuesday as Edin Dzeko and Henrikh Mkhitaryan got on the score-sheet.
Simone Inzaghi's side will take a healthy advantage into next Tuesday's second leg as they look to win the competition for the first time since 2010.
One of the other main takeaways from Milan vs. Inter was that of the away team's lack of sponsor as fans online were left confused.
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One Twitter user wrote: "No sponsor on Inter kits tonight?" While another added: "Inter have no front sponsor?"
The Nerazzurri had their famous blue and black stripes on show, WITHOUT a sponsor. That's because Inter have NOT yet received any payments this season from shirt sponsor DigitalBits despite signing a deal worth £75 million in September 2021.
As a result, Inter dropped the blockchain company's logo from their shirts amid payment issues.
Fellow Serie A club AS Roma have also suspended their agreement with DigitalBits as they have removed their logo from their shirts, too.
Inter played without a shirt sponsor for the first time against Lazio last month.
The company released a statement a day before the club's league fixture, responding to the suspension of their partnership.
"Digitalbits foundation has undertaken a proactive process for the redefinition of partnerships that will involve the Digitalbits brand in the future, in line with the objectives of economic sustainability and use of blockchain technology," they said.
"The sponsorship contracts regarding the exposure of the Digitalbits brand with the football teams Roma and Inter were concluded with Zytara labs.
"Digitalbits foundation represents the community and ecosystem aimed at promoting blockchain technology and its use."
Inter will likely be sponsor-less again when they host Milan in the return leg.
Topics: Inter Milan, Football, Fan Reactions
Nasir Jabbar