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Turkey's national air carrier Turkish Airlines (THY) has become the official sponsor of Spanish footbal club FC Barcelona.

THY's Director General Temel Kotil and FC Barcelona's President Joan Laporta announced the cooperation during a press conference at Camp Nou Stadium in Barcelona on Monday.

Speaking to reporters, Kotil said that signing a sponsorship agreement with a football giant like FC Barcelona was a great privilege.

Laporta said in his part that the agreement would bring "success and profit" to both parties.

According to the sponsorship deal, THY will pay a total of 7.7 million EUR to FC Barcelona for a period of 2.5 years.

Half of the sponsorship fee will be paid in advance at the beginning of the season. A barter agreement will be signed for the remaining half.

THY will not carry the team members free of charge whenever they request and a certain price will be determined for flights. Total costs will be deducted from the barter agreement at the end of the year. By this way, THY will get back some of the sponsorship fee.

As part of the agreement, THY will have the right to use the billboards inside the Camp Nou Stadium during matches, organize activities such as receptions and concerts in and out of the stadium and use its logos at the press section.

THY is Turkey's national airline company and is one of the fastest growing carriers in Europe.

The Istanbul-based airline is using Istanbul's Ataturk Airport as a hub for flights to Europe, Asia and Africa in partnership with the Star Alliance group of airlines. Numbur of passengers at THY grew 10.1 percent to 18.6 million in the first nine months of 2009.

FC Barcelona is a football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.

The team, which was founded in 1899, is one of the most successful clubs in European football, having won fourteen major trophies in total, including eleven UEFA and FIFA official competitions.


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