Bakcell to sponsor Azerbaijan national team

Mobile phone operator Bakcell has agreed a sponsorship deal with the Association of Football Federations of Azerbaijan governing body to become a sponsor of the country’s national football team.

The deal will run for five years, from 2014 to 2018.

Bakcell first linked up with the association in 2012 for the Fifa Under-17 Women’s World Cup national tournament in a deal that allowed the company to gain the naming rights to a new national stadium in Baku, the Bakcell Arena.

“We believe that Azerbaijan has a great football potential and this potential is able to able to carry the country's football forward,” Bakcell chief executive officer Richard Shearer said. “Therefore we support the association in its work covering the whole country.”

Azerbaijan recently missed out on qualifying for the 2014 Fifa World Cup national tournament after finishing fourth in European qualifying Group F.