FC Barcelona has decided against a shirt sponsorship contract in which the team was to advertise the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, Spanish media said on Wednesday.
The Spanish champion, which months ago was close to a reported five-year agreement with Chinese authorities, has lost interest in the deal and prefers to remain the only top European soccer team not to wear advertising, news agency Efe said, citing club sources.
However, Barcelona has not dismissed the idea of shirt sponsorship in future, although it will reportedly only consider European and US multinationals as prospective partners.
The club was not immediately available to confirm the report.
In May, Barcelona president Joan Laporta met with representatives of Games organizers to discuss an agreement.
Spanish media said Barcelona's shirts were to only carry the name "Beijing" to promote the city to tourists. No reference was to be made to the Olympics, since the International Olympic Committee opposed the idea.
Barcelona will now seek another way to raise the 15 million euros (US$17.93 million) it had budgeted for from the first year of the proposed agreement, the report added. If no shirt advertiser is found, the Catalan club may attempt to raise funds by renegotiating with its suppliers, possibly shirt manufacturer Nike, with which it has a 12-million-euro deal running until 2008.
Barcelona has been looking for ways to boost its revenue since Laporta took charge in 2003.
Laporta said the club needed a significant increase to attract top players and compete in the cash-rich European Champions League, dominated by other big spenders such as Real Madrid, Chelsea and AC Milan.
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