The close-knit relationship between ‘the Beautiful Game’ and commercial airlines is a fascinating one, combining eye-watering sums of money and the power of two titanic global industries.  

A report published in December 2024, by Research and Markets said that, across 296 agreements currently in place, an estimated $1.2 billion was tied into the sports industry through sponsorships. 

However, it is football, or soccer, that utterly dominates the airline sponsorship market, with 111 active carrier agreements contracted within the sport.  

Basketball, which was the second most popular for airline investment, could only muster up 35 agreements, mainly focused on the United States (US). 

A separate report by Global Data said that “major revenue generator carriers” such as Delta Air Lines, American Airlines, Qatar Airways and Turkish Airlines have the financial firepower to back the biggest teams in sport with the ultimate prize of global visibility to over three billion football fans around the world. 

The airlines currently most active within the sports industry are Emirates, Etihad Airways, Qatar Airways and Riyadh Air, according to Research and Markets. 

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