Those lime green Seattle Sounders FC jerseys around Seattle will have “Xbox” printed on the front for at least one more year.
First noted by Don Ruiz at the Tacoma News Tribune, the Sounders extended its jersey sponsorship with Microsoft for through the 2014 season.
The Sounders have sported “Xbox” on their jerseys since the club entered Major League Soccer in 2009, as part of a reported four-year, $20 million deal. But it wasn’t clear if the partnership would continue after the Sounders hired an agency to explore new sponsorship options one year ago. On top of that, Emirates, the airline that sponsors English Premier League club Arsenal, was interested in teaming with Seattle.
Yet today’s announcement means one more year of Xbox on the pitch for the club. Sounders GM Adrian Hanauer said that Xbox is the “perfect partner” for his organization and is looking forward to continuing a relationship with Microsoft.
You’d imagine Microsoft would want to slap “Xbox One” on the front of the jerseys for the 2014 season with the next-gen console set to hit shelves this November. We’ve reached out to the team and will update as we find out more.
