April 10 – AC Milan may be struggling to finally get the sale of the club to Chinese investors off the ground, but main sponsor Emirates is having no such problem with its involvement with the club, unveiling an A380 aircraft sporting a special AC Milan livery at Milan Malpensa International Airport.
The livery features five AC Milan players – Carlos Bacca, Giacomo Bonaventura, Mattia De Sciglio, Gianluigi Donnarumma and Riccardo Montolivo – who were on the tarmac to witness the aircraft’s first landing in Milan and posed next to the double-decker on which their photo spans more than 500m2.
The AC Milan A380 then continued on to New York JFK on the airline’s non-stop service from Milan. The decal will remain on the aircraft until August.
Emirates began its sponsorship with AC Milan in 2007 during a period of massive global expansion for the airline. Initially signing up as the club’s ‘Top Institutional Sponsor’ for three years, it expanded its relationship in 2010 by signing a four-year deal to become the club’s official shirt sponsor.
That shirt sponsorship deal was renewed in 2014 in a five-year agreement reported to be worth €85 million. It was announced on the day Emirates first landed its A380 aircraft in Milan.
As well as the Emirates logo appearing on the front of AC Milan’s playing and training kits, the airline also receives branding within the San Siro Stadium, The Emirates Lounge – a dedicated in-stadia hospitality suite, sponsorship of the youth team and a package of other marketing rights.
It now has the club’s logo, colours and players on its largest plane that flies to 47 different destinations around the world.
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