Red Star Belgrade Did Not Remove Gazprom Kit Sponsor

Serbian club FK Crvena zvezda, known as Red Star Belgrade in English, appear to remain loyal to their main sponsor Gazprom.

Russia and Serbia are both predominantly Slavic and Eastern Orthodox countries, which share a strong mutual cultural affinity. The countries have been close allies for centuries; and the friendship between them has been strongly maintained despite Serbia's recent attempt to maintain closer relations with the West.

Red Star Play With Gazprom Logo On Kits

In Sunday's derby against Partizan, Red Star Belgrade did have the logo of energy supplier Gazprom on their kits. They did not remove it, in contrast to German club Schalke 04 and Austrian side Austria Wien.

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Gazprom have been sponsoring FK Crvena zvezda for more than 10 years. They currently have a contract until summer 2022, worth a reported sum of 4 million Euro/year.

Reports from Serbia suggest that UEFA may ban FK Crvena zvezda from wearing the logo on their chests, and "the Russians would certainly not like that".

The club did not comment on the Gazprom sponsorship yet.

Russian club Zenit are also sponsored by Gazprom. The club are owned and sponsored by the Russian state-owned energy giant Gazprom, and play their home matches at the Gazprom Arena. It appears impossible that they will remove the Gazprom logo, and they did not do so.

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