Bank Asya ends League One deal

ISTANBUL - Hürriyet Daily News

Bank Asya vows to continue its jersey sponsorship with League One clubs. AA Photo

Bank Asya withdrew from its Turkish League One football sponsorship yesterday, claiming state-run TRT has failed to fulfill its contract obligations.

Bank Asya, a participation bank, announced its withdrawal from the sponsorship it has held since January 2008 with a statement to the Istanbul Stock Exchange. Clubs have typically been given an average of 150,000 Turkish Liras each per year, which amounts to roughly 15 percent of a League One club’s revenue, Eurosport reported. Bank Asya also provided an additional 100,000 liras to those clubs whose average spectator number exceeded 5,000.

TRT has not yet made a formal announcement but briefly denied Bank Asya’s claims. “We have not yet been informed by Bank Asya, so we cannot make an official statement about [their withdrawal],” Eurosport quoted an unnamed TRT official as saying. “But we can say that their statement that our obligations were unfulfilled is not true.”

Bank Asya was also the jersey sponsor for 10 different clubs this season. The bank plans to continue its jersey sponsorships in the coming season, but TRT is already negotiating with firms like Spor Toto, which also sponsors the top-flight Super League, for rights to the league’s name, according to daily Hürriyet.

Hamza Hamzaoğlu, the coach of second-place Akhisar Belediyespor, said the league would not miss a beat with the departure of Bank Asya. “Bank Asya has done enough promotion already and they may think there is no need for more investment,” he told Eurosport. “I am sure more firms will come along. This league has brought success to Bank Asya, and I am sure it will boost the new sponsor as well.”