Qatar Airways, new PSG partner

Kylian Mbappe and Neymar during the Coup de la Ligue match against Saint-Etienne, on January 8 at the Parc des Princes. Thibault Camus / AP

Paris-Saint-Germain (PSG), owned by the QSI investment fund QSI, has signed a three-year partnership with Qatar Airways, Qatar State airline, the Parisian club announced on Saturday 1st February. The amount of this new partnership has not been released. Classified in the category "Premium" among the thirty sponsors that PSG has, it is estimated between 5 and 10 million euros annually according to a source close to the club.

Qatar Airways, already a partner of the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA), the South American Football Confederation (Conmebol), or other clubs, such as AS Rome (Italy), Boca Juniors (Argentina) and Bayern Munich (Germany), also becomes "Airline partner" of the women's and handball section of PSG. The partnership runs until 2022, when Qatar will host the Football World Cup (November 21 – December 18).

Read also Football Leaks: the overpriced contracts of the PSG Qatari version

As recalled The Parisian, "Qatar Airways joins the long list of sponsors with direct links to the small Gulf State owner of Paris-Saint-Germain". PSG already lists among its premium partners: QNB (Qatar National Bank), Ooredoo (Qatari telecommunications company), QTA (Qatar Tourism Authority), BeIN Sports (Qatari TV channel). We remember that, during the analysis of the accounts of PSG in 2018, and in particular its famous “Qatari” contracts, the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) had discounted the value of the QTA contract, spent by 100 million euros (a value itself already discounted in 2014) to 58 million euros.

Related party contracts

According to UEFA’s Financial Fair Play (FPF) requirements, the revenue from these related party contracts may not exceed 30% of total sponsorship income. Two years ago, the PSG had also ended partnerships with Qatari entities (Aspire and Aspetar) to limit their weight in its accounts.

The Paris club signed in 2019 the "Two most important sponsorship contracts in its history", with the equipment supplier Nike and ALL, a brand of the Accor hotel group, valued at around 150 million euros annually. In addition to the objective of catching up with its rivals, the PSG must increase its revenues to continue to meet the requirements of the FPF, very vigilant towards it since the sumptuous expenses of summer 2017 estimated at 400 million euros to recruit Neymar and Kylian Mbappé, and secure financial support from institutions directly linked to its shareholder.

PSG won a legal victory last March over the FPF, which prohibits clubs from spending more money than they generate on their own, when the Sports Arbitral Tribunal (CAS) found that the case of the club, which UEFA wanted to reopen, was "Closed". To ward off any threat of sanctions, Paris will have to make sure each year not to present a deficit of more than 30 million euros accumulated over the last three accounting years.

Read also Financial fair play: PSG wins its case before the CAS

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