Barclays Renews Premier Deal at £82.25M

Barclays has officially signed a three year deal with the Premier League worth £82.25 million ($134.5 million) over the next three years.

“The clubs unanimously accepted Barclays' proposal and are looking forward to further developing a successful relationship for what must be considered one of sport's top sponsorship properties," Premier League chief executive Richard Scudamore said.

The title sponsorship deal will include exclusive world-wide marketing rights, UK and international TV programme accreditation, advertising packages, match day tickets and hospitality.

The new deal is close to a 25% increase on Barclays existing deal.

Is this a sign that financials may be warming back up to sponsorship? Not so fast. Mark Kleinman of Sky News writes that Barclays is one of the few banks that could have pulled off this deal:

It's worth noting that for Barclays, this agreement is another example of why it believed it was so worthwhile to remain free from direct taxpayer ownership during the banking crisis last year.

Even if they had the financial wherewithal to do so, it's impossible to imagine Lloyds Banking Group or Royal Bank of Scotland sealing deals on this scale in the current climate.