German national team’s new sponsor

CAIRO – 15 July 2017: Volkswagen Group said in a statement on Friday that it will become the main sponsor of the German national football team instead of rival Mercedes, who has been sponsoring the team for 45 years.

Volkswagen, the largest European automaker group, said it had signed a new sponsorship contract with the German Football Association for five years starting in January 2019, according to Reuters.

Volkswagen will pay between € 25 million and € 30 million Euros ($ 29-34 million dollars) a year, according to the contract, including € six million in sponsorship fees for the German Cup, a source with the group said.

"As a company we have set ourselves ambitious targets for the coming years, Volkswagen is changing and we are facing great challenges, the sponsorship with the German association will help us in this field," said Herbert Diess, Group Chief Executive Officer.

The group has spent a lot of money over the years on their team Wolfsburg one of the Bundesliga competitors, but experts do not see any benefits of the investment in the club because the revenues of the club is limited and the team does not have a fan base outside Germany, Super Kora reported.