A total of 15 top European clubs would risk losing their shirt sponsor for the contract following the expiration of the previous sponsor. The financial crisis makes football clubs are now having trouble finding a new sponsor.

Sponsors jersey is an important part in the wheel of life from the club because this is where the team received a large income. The longer the contract for the team uniform, the longer the club also enjoyed the large funding. The more famous the name of the trustees of funds, the greater the coverage of the club by the media.

According to research conducted by the Sport + Markt in Germany, the amount of funds raised from this sector has decreased by 3 percent or 393.2 million worth of euros from a year earlier. Spain and the UK is the country hardest hit in this crisis. The problem got worse after the currency exchange rate sterling against the U.S. dollar decline.

Sport + Markt mentioned, there are currently more than 30 financial or insurance companies that become sponsors for top-class clubs throughout Europe. Four lenders in the previous season, missing from the list of sponsors this season.

“At a time of financial crisis, companies will choose to cut costs and sponsorship of sporting activities, including soccer team uniform, and this is a natural thing and the easiest to do,” said Chris Brooks, a finance professor and director of research at the ICMA Centre, University of Reading.

Still, some financial experts say that the crisis will not affect the big teams like Manchester United. Experts believe, MU would not be having trouble finding new persons to replace the insurance giant AIG from the United States who had three seasons to give an injection of funds in large amounts. Several airlines, including AirAsia of Malaysia and Saudi Telecom, and even ready to buy the right promotion at the T-shirt “Red Devils”.

The crisis will really hit the teams with the achievement of lower class. West Ham United, for example, who have lost a sponsor of the XL for three months last year. West Ham then cooperates with an online gambling house, SBOBET, during 18 months with a value of half the value of the previous sponsor.

Promotion in the English Premier League club, West Bromwich Albion, had not even got a new partner for their uniforms, while the six clubs in the Spanish Primera Division started the season with a similar fate.

Based on data obtained from the Deloitte study, this season there are three clubs that would end the contract with their sponsors. They are Inter Milan (Italy), Manchester City (England), and Fenerbahce (Turkey).

Here is a list of termination of sponsorship for uniforms clubs:
2008/09 season
1. Inter Milan: Pirelli (automotive) – 8 million euro (10-year long contract)
2. Man. City: Thomas Cook (travel) – 2.5 million (six years),
3. Fenerbahce: Avea (telecommunications) – without a caption (5 years),

2009/10 season
1. Man. United: AIG (insurance) – 20.8 million (four years)
2. Real Madrid: Bwin (gambling and online gaming) – 20 million (3 years)
3. Bayern Munich: T-Home (telecommunications) – 18 million (8 years)
4. Chelsea: Samsung (electronics) – 13 million (5 years)
5th. Tottenham Hotspur: Mansion (gambling) – 12.5 million (four years)
6. Juventus: New Holland (agricultural equipment) – 11 million (three years),
7. Liverpool: Carlsberg (drink) – 10 million (18 years)
8. AC Milan: Bwin (gambling and online gaming) – 10 million (4 years)
9. Werder Bremen: City Bank (financial) v 10 million (3 years)
10. Newcastle: Northern Rock (the bank) – 7.5 million (7 years)
11. Roma: Wind (telecommunications) – 6 million (3 years)
12. West Ham United-Sbobet (gambling) – 2.2 million (18 months)