MTA renews £350,000 sponsorship of The Blades

The Malta Tourism Authority insisted yesterday that the renewed £350,000 annual sponsorship agreement with Sheffield United was value-added for Malta, even though it was too early to prove it.

The authority made the remarks as it renewed the deal with The Blades for two years for €350,000 a year.

CEO Josef Formosa Gauci said the authority had the option to back out of the agreement after one year.

According to a study commissioned by the football club and the authority, the projected value of the sponsorship agreement amounted to €1,429,371: £760,867 from media coverage and £668,504 from other benefits.

The club also carried out an online survey with its fan database and 91 per cent said they would visit Malta after seeing the logo on the players' gear.

However, Mr Formosa Gauci said it was too early to have any figures about the positive results of the sponsorship.

The sponsorship agreement was first announced in August 2008 with the MTA initially refusing to disclose the full sum. However, after pressure was made, it divulged the amount. The MTA was trying to upgrade Malta's image in the UK as it was associated with a destination for an older crowd. However, the UK remained one of Malta's core markets for tourism, Mr Formosa Gauci said.

The television coverage the island got as a result of the agreement was much more than Malta could ever afford, he added. Malta received promotion through the logo promoting the island around the stadiums and that emblazoned with the visitMalta.com logo on the 35,000 gear tops sold.

The agreement includes promoting Malta in China as a destination to learn English before studying at Sheffield University, Mr Formosa Gauci said.