By TRAVIS CLARK
For the first time in Barcelona's history, the Catalan club's jerseys will bear a sponsor on its front.
Putting an end to 111 years without a sponsor, Barca announced an agreement with the Qatar Foundation in a deal valued at £125 million. Barcelona has previously paid to bear the logo of UNICEF in recent seasons, and will keep that logo as well.
The agreement is for five years, and is scheduled to run through 2016 — Barceolina will receive £25 million per year. The non-profit foundation promotes education in the Middle East, and is chaired by Sheikha Mozah Bint Nasser Al-Missned, the wife of the Qatari Emir who played a role in bringing the 2022 World Cup to Qatar.
Here are a few other stories for Friday:
MANCHESTER UNITED GETS INJURY BOOST
Ahead of their big game on Monday against Arsenal, Sir Alex Ferguson revealed that the trio of Rio Ferdinand, Paul Scholes and Patrice Evra should be fit to face the London club. Ferdinand had to be substituted against Valencia during this week's Champions League group match, a game that Scholes and Evra both missed out on. Manchester United are one point behind Arsenal in the English Premier League, with a game in hand.
TORONTO SELLS OUT SEASON TICKETS
Despite the club's poor performance on the field, season tickets in Toronto continue to be a rousing success. Toronto FC announced Friday that the allotment for 2011 season tickets had sold out, with partial ticket packages still available for next season. There had been some controversy surrounding ticket prices earlier in the year, after another price rise.
REAL MADRID EYES GYAN
With star striker Gonzalo Higuain set to miss out 2 months with a hernia injury, Real Madrid is lining up possible replacements for the Argentine. That list includes Sunderland and Ghana striker Asamoah Gyan, who moved from French club Rennes to Sunderland prior to the 2010-11 season for £13 million.
VAN DER VAART TO MISS CHELSEA MATCH
Tottenham midfielder Rafa van der Vaart won't be available for Sunday's match against Chelsea, the club revealed Friday. Since moving to the North London club from Real Madrid, van der Vaart has played well, but has battled through a variety of niggling injuries. The Dutch star is recovering from a hamstring injury.
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What do you think about Barcelona's jersey deal?