Girona, from LaLiga, whose majority owners are the City Football Group [CFG]have announced a new three-year sponsorship deal with Etihad Airways after qualifying for the Champions League for the first time this season.
Etihad Airways will replace Gosbi, a Catalan pet store, on the front of Girona's shirts from the start of the 2024-25 campaign.
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The Abu Dhabi-based airline is also the title sponsor of several other teams that are part of the CFG network, including iconic clubs Manchester City, New York City and Melbourne City.
“Girona is a club that resonates with the values and aspirations of our brand,” said Arik De, chief commercial and revenue officer at Etihad Airway.
“This sponsorship is a testament to our dedication to the Spanish and Catalan market and our aim to strengthen ties between the UAE and Spain.”
The agreement comes after a historic season for Girona, which finished third in LaLiga with 81 points and qualified for the Champions League for the first time in the club's 94-year history.
However, they are still waiting for UEFA clearance to play in next season's competition as partner club Manchester City also qualified, sources told ESPN.
Girona, which is 47% owned by CFG, is one of 13 teams in the group and its classification alongside the Premier League champions has raised a potential conflict with the multiple club ownership rule contained in Article 5 of UEFA club competition regulations.
The Catalan club will have to define its position and organizational independence from City at a meeting of the UEFA Club Financial Control Body (CFCB) this summer before receiving authorization to play in the Champions League.
Meanwhile, AP has reported that CFG has been offered two divestment options to allow both teams to compete in the same competition.
They could reportedly sell shares to an independent third party that reduces an ownership stake to less than 30% or transfer all of a club's shares to a blind trust overseen by a UEFA-appointed panel.
RB Leipzig and FC Salzburg, both owned by the Red Bull Group, have been allowed to play together in the Champions League in recent seasons, while last July, UEFA accepted the admission of several clubs to its competitions despite of concerns about potential shared ownership issues.
Aston Villa and Vitoria, Brighton and Union Saint-Gilloise and AC Milan and Toulouse were authorized to participate in UEFA competitions following a CFCB hearing.
A source told ESPN that Tuesday's Etihad deal is unlikely to be scrutinized for anything else if it has been executed at fair market value and would be unlikely to prove to be a related party transaction.
There is no direct crossover between CFG and Etihad Airways, the latter being owned by a state-controlled Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund.
Sources close to Girona are optimistic that the club will be able to compete in the Champions League next season.
This Sunday the players took an open bus tour of the city to celebrate qualification for the competition under the motto: “Girona, Champion [League] territory.”
The parade ended in the city center, at the town hall, with the players coming out onto the balcony to greet the thousands of fans who had come out to see them.
