Turkish Airlines backs Galatasaray in Europe

By Can Erozden

ANKARA (AA) - Turkish Airlines Tuesday became Galatasaray's jersey sponsor for the European matches of the Istanbul football club this season.

Galatasaray said on its website that the team's jerseys will feature the airline’s logo in the European games.

The sponsorship deal is valid for a year, the club said.

The Turkish flag carrier sponsored Galatasaray for the first time in 2014 for the team's European campaign.

This season Galatasaray are set to play against Real Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain and Club Brugge in the UEFA Champions League Group A.

Turkish Airlines inked a three-year sponsorship deal with the world famous Argentinian football club River Plate in August as the Buenos Aires club had the airline’s logo on their jerseys.

The Turkish flag carrier sponsored the UEFA Euro 2016 as well as prominent football clubs such as Barcelona, Manchester United and Borussia Dortmund.

Turkish Airlines, founded in 1933 with a five-aircraft fleet, currently has 343 aircrafts, including passenger and cargo planes, and flies to 315 destinations worldwide in 126 countries.

In 2018, the airline carried 75.2 million passengers, indicating an annual rise of 10%.