Qatar Airways and Emirates Set for Rare Sponsorship Scenario in Champions League Final.

Roger Hampel

This year’s UEFA Champions League final between Paris Saint-Germain and Arsenal FC will not only be the biggest club football match in Europe this season. From a business perspective, it also presents a rare sponsorship case involving two global airline brands appearing as the main shirt sponsors of both finalists.

On one side is Qatar Airways and Paris Saint-Germain. On the other is Emirates and Arsenal.

While airline sponsorship has been closely linked to elite football for years, it is uncommon for two clubs sponsored by competing companies from the same sector to meet in a Champions League final.

Two Sponsorship Structures Built in Different Ways Qatar Airways

Although both partnerships belong to the aviation industry, they have developed through different commercial models over time.

Emirates’ relationship with Arsenal has become one of the most established long-term sponsorship structures in European football. The agreement includes front-of-shirt sponsorship, naming rights for Emirates Stadium and broader global marketing integration dating back to 2006.

Qatar Airways’ partnership with PSG has evolved with stronger links to travel and fan experience integration, including loyalty programme activations through Privilege Club and football-related travel offerings connected to the wider PSG ecosystem.

Both partnerships are designed around global visibility and long-term brand association, but they operate through different activation approaches.

Why Finals Matter for Sponsors

Major football finals create one of the largest concentrated attention windows in global sport. For sponsors, these events combine broadcast exposure, digital engagement and emotional association within a very short period of time.

Brandwatch data during the UEFA Euro 2024 final illustrated how quickly conversation volume can scale around major football events, while research by Ngan, Prendergast and Tsang suggested that strong team performance can positively influence sponsor purchase intention, particularly among casual supporters.

In practical terms, this affects:

• brand recall

• online search behaviour

• social media visibility

• emotional connection with audiences

The impact extends beyond the match itself and becomes part of longer-term brand memory linked to major sporting moments.

Moreover, the final also takes place during a complex operational period for the aviation sector in the MENA region, adding further visibility to two companies already strongly associated with global travel and international sport.