Soccer: McDonalds join England sponsorship team

The Football Association today announced the third tier of their new five-pronged sponsorship strategy with McDonalds as the fast food chain vowed to invest in 8,000 new community-based coaches for young players.

The FA’s policy is to assemble five ‘‘partner’’ sponsors who will share the rights to align themselves with the FA Cup and the England national team.

Umbro were the first to agree terms, paying £140m (€227m) for an eight-year deal with the FA, while Nationwide followed suit last month in signing a four-year contract worth £30m (€48m).

The FA’s plan is to have five companies sharing sponsorship of the England team and the FA Cup from the start of next season, just as UEFA have a range of main backers for the Champions League.

Now McDonalds have been unveiled as the third company to agree terms for a four-year deal starting for next season which is expected to equate to roughly the same £30m (€48m) total package as Nationwide have paid.

While Umbro have also linked themselves with the ‘‘elite’’ game and Nationwide have pledged to invest in women’s football, McDonalds are the FA’s new community partner.

This will see them spearhead the launch of a new coaching qualification which is aimed at recruiting 8,000 new community-based coaches for youngsters over the next four years.

Successful candidates would work with clubs, schools and youth groups to build the skill level among children across the country.