Sports

Thursday November 5, 2009

Free burgers for Thailand’s top players

BANGKOK: Thailand’s top soccer players will feast on free burgers as part of a three-year sponsorship deal with American fast food giant McDonald’s worth almost US$900,000, the country’s soccer president said yesterday.

McDonald’s will provide 25mil baht (US$747,000) for the Football Association of Thailand (FAT) and will offer 5mil baht in products in exchange for shirt sponsorship for the next three years, starting this month.

“This will be a great help towards our efforts to reach the 2014 World Cup Finals,” FAT president Worawi Makudi told Reuters.

“This funding will help develop our game, especially youth football, and all the players, junior and senior, will get to enjoy the food too,” he added.

Thailand’s national team, who are currently 110th in the FIFA rankings, signed a five-year kit sponsorship deal with US sports giant Nike in 2007 for an undisclosed figure.

The team have never qualified for the World Cup Finals and are now being coached by former England and Manchester United captain Bryan Robson (pic) .

Meanwhile, Sweden, Poland and Denmark will play in next year’s King’s Cup tournament with hosts Thailand, a local newspaper reported yesterday.

The four countries will contest the annual round-robin tournament in the northeastern Thai city of Nakhon Ratchasima from Jan 17-23, the Bangkok Post quoted Worawi as saying. — Reuters

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