Tom Hicks, the co-owner of English soccer club Liverpool, has
vowed that the club will not rest on its laurels after securing a
world record shirt sponsorship
deal with Standard Chartered worth more than US$130
million over the next four years.
Hicks expects that deal - which will see
Standard Chartered sell Liverpool
shirts in its branches throughout Asia - to be worth
more than it is at first glance, while the club's managing director
Christian Purslow is
spearheading a number of other commercial sponsorships, including
one with outgoing shirt sponsors Carlsberg.
"We are seeing for the first time the real power of the brand
and the power of a well managed club," said Hicks. "I feel very
good about the entire club. The total sponsorship contracts should
probably bring in 25, 26 million pounds (US$42 million) of
incremental revenue a year. It's a huge development for the club.
It's not just the 21 million pounds (US$34 million) that we will
develop from the new sponsorship agreement with Standard Chartered
because we will have an additional two or three million pounds for
the Infinity part of the deal."
Carlsberg, meanwhile, are expected to keep hold of the lucrative
pouring rights at the club's Anfield stadium. "We have an existing
contract with Carlsberg until the end of the season," said Hicks.
"Between now and the end of the season we will finalise new
arrangements where we will retain the Carlsberg special sponsorship
packages and pour Carlsberg products in the stadium. They will be
one of our key sponsors, just not on our shirts."