"Etihad eyes Man City sponsorship"

MIDDLE East airline Etihad is reportedly in talks with Manchester City over a record breaking shirt sponsorship deal.

City’s £2.3m a year deal with Thomas Cook expires at the end of this year, and since the club’s takeover by Sheik Mansour a billionaire member of the Abu Dhabi royal family, the club has become the richest in the world, with a higher profile than ever before.

A deal with the award-winning airline, which is based in Abu Dhabi, would not be a major surprise.

A spokesman for Etihad, which is the national airline of the United Arab Emirates was tight-lipped on the reports.

He said:“As an airline based in Abu Dhabi it’s inevitable there will be speculation that Etihad Airways will be linked commercially with Manchester City but we do not comment on this speculation.”