Barça negotiating four-year sponsorship extension with Qatar Airways

Barcelona are negotiating a four-year extension of their shirt sponsorship deal with Qatar Airways. The Azulgrana extended the initial agreement by one more season this summer while continuing to hold talks with other companies with regards to next summer. 

The Barça board took the decision to continue with Qatar Airways due to the lack of time they had to reach an adequate agreement which met with their economic demands. It was a way of saving time. Since then, Barcelona have scoured the market, but Qatar Airways remain at the table. They don't want to lose the place of honour they hold at the moment. 

Qatar, who have been linked with Barça since 2010, have decided to up their current offer of 35 million euros in an attempt to seduce those in charge at Barça. Remember that the club were asking for more than 60 million euros from potential sponsors. Barça and Qatar Airwars are negotiating an agreement until 2021, which is when Josep Maria Bartomeu's mandate ends. 

"We didn't have time to negotiate an appropriate agreement with them, for that reason we decided to extend for one more season. We are in talks with them to extend it again over a four year period," said Akbar Al Baker, the CEO of Qatar Airways.

Barcelona, at the same time, are at work in the American market place to look at other possibilities with regards to shirt sponsorship and are also working with American company Wagner to look for brands which could sponsor the construction of the new Camp Nou.