A look at airline football shirt sponsors as Ryan Reynolds and Wrexham AFC land United Airlines deal

Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney have already propelled their team Wrexham AFC to a new league and a new level of fame, but now they are preparing themselves for any future turbulence in League Two with a whole host of new sponsors.

Last season, fans could see the likes of Reynold’s Aviation Gin on the team’s shirts as well as Expedia and TikTok. However, the latter two sponsors are set to expire this summer meaning the American actors are acting quickly to replace their financial income.

Many fans will not worry about Rob and Ryan drawing in new funds due to their collective net worth of $400 million and their Hollywood connections as seen by Blake Lively’s Betty Buzz signing on to be one of the 2023/24 sponsors; however the owners caused some anguish when they tweeted a picture that read ‘Wrexham United’.

The actors stepped in to calm Wrexham fans by explaining that they are indeed ‘not changing the name’ of this historic Welsh club but instead were announcing a major cash boost from new sponsor United Airlines.

The deal will see United Airlines plastered across the shirts of the Red Dragons when they step up to League Two - a move not entirely alien to football teams across the country.

Arsenal and Emirates

Emirates has been printed across the chest of Arsenal football players since 2006 and in 2018 the airline signed a five-year extension contract worth a reported £200 million.

It is important to note that the extension will cease after next season where Arsenal will try to reclaim the title they just lost out on this year to Manchester City. Will Emirates re-sign with the Gunners?

Manchester City and Etihad Airways

Arsenal’s toughest 2022/23 competition Man City is another football team to be sponsored by an airline.

Not only do the likes of Erling Haaland, Jack Grealish and Kyle Walker sport ‘Etihad’ on their blue shirts, but the current Premier League and FA Cup champs have called their home base the Etihad Stadium for over a decade since the reported £400 million deal was first created. 

Barcelona and Qatar Airways

Despite having a long history with Qatar Airways as their main sponsor, FC Barcelona parted ways with the company in 2017/18 and joined forces with Japanese company Rakuten.

The Spanish team and Doha airline decided to split as a result of ‘economic reasons’ and ‘other social issues’.