Usmanov relationship with Everton continues to grow

Everton Women finally have a kit sponsor, and it’s just in time too ahead of the FA Cup Final on Sunday at Wembley against Manchester City.

The Blues are off to a rocking start to the season, undefeated in Women’s Super League (WSL) play and sitting second in the table. Per the details released by the club yesterday, MegaFon are expanding their footprint of sponsorship of club activities by encompassing the women’s kit as the major sponsor, with affiliated cellphone service Yota as the sleeve sponsor.

MegaFon is owned by USM, a holding company with Alisher Usmanov as the major stakeholder. The Uzbek-born Russian oligarch is a close friend and business partner of Everton majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri. USM already has naming rights to the Finch Farm training facility, the men’s team training kits and also have a £30 million deal for the first option of naming rights on the proposed stadium to be built at the Bramley-Moore docks.

While the financial terms of the new deal were not released, this is an additional revenue stream for the Toffees that can help the club’s overall fiscal situation where they were hovering right about the level the Premier League would start to think about imposing Financial Fair Play regulations.

The men’s side are yet to announce a sleeve sponsor, but you would have to believe that piece of prime ‘real estate’ is not going to stay unmarked for too long especially if the Blues continue to maintain their spot at or around the top of the table as they have.

Everton’s Sporting and Commercial Director for Everton Women, Sarvar Ismailov, incidentally also the nephew of Usmanov, said:

“This partnership reflects the increasing prominence of the women’s game and the exciting future for our women’s team.

“Securing exclusive commercial partnerships for Everton Women has been a key part of our vision and strategy for developing a team that challenges at the top of the Women’s Super League.

“We are delighted that MegaFon has seen the opportunity to join us on that exciting journey. This is a truly international partnership and having a company of such a scale as a principal partner demonstrates the exciting trajectory for both Everton Women and MegaFon.”

With the MegaFon and Yota brands appearing on all Everton Women’s playing kits, Gevork Vermishyan, Chief Executive Officer for MegaFon, said:

“We are delighted to further expand our agreement with Everton in what is a very exciting time for Everton Women.

“This partnership allows us to support the women’s game in England and be part of a club with huge ambition and an international reach playing in the now globally recognised WSL.

“We wish the Club the very best of luck for the Women’s FA Cup Final this weekend and the rest of the 2020/21 season, as we look forward to building on our strong relationship with Everton, Everton Women and their international fanbase.”