Sponsors to help Athletic to new level

Date published: 04 July 2014


ATHLETIC’S new sponsorship deal will boost the cash manager Lee Johnson will have to spend on players.

The club’s ground will be renamed SportsDirect.com Park as part of a deal running to £1million over five years.

Chairman Simon Corney says the money will boost the club’s spending power. The club is bound by financial rules that restrict player spending to 60 per cent of turnover, so deals like the new one are a big boost set against disappointing home attendances.

“It is very exciting for the club and also necessary,” Corney said of the deal. “We need these kinds of funds to help Lee build a team we think will be capable of challenging. This goes some way towards doing that.

“A lot of fans want us to spend more. But the best way to do that is to get more numbers through the gates and we struggle with that a little bit. We have to look at alternative sources. The more money you bring in, the more you can spend.”

Corney claimed the deal will help to lift Athletic above several rivals in the division for financial power.

“Along with the new North Stand, it shows progression,” he added. “If you look at the clubs who are moving in the right direction, all have good, big sponsorship deals — so why should we be any different?

“It takes us to another level.”