Associated Press

Bangkok, July 7:

Thailand’s biggest beer company on Wednesday announced a sponsorship agreement with English Premier League side Everton, which will allow its twin elephants logo to be displayed on the team’s shirts. The contract was signed by Everton director Paul Gregg and the director of Thai Beverages Marketing Co Ltd, Thapana Sirivadhanabhakdi, a company statement said.

It did not give details but Gregg told reporters that Thai Beverages will pay Everton about $2.8 million for a one-year contract sponsorship. Thai Beverages is best known for its flagship product Chang Beer, and has a dominant position in the local alcohol market with several brands of whisky including Mekong and Saeng Som.

Chang means elephant in Thai. The Chang Beer logo of two elephants facing each other in profile will replace the logo of a Chinese cellular phone company on Everton shirts. “We are proud to be the first Thai brand on an English Premier League club shirt,” Thapana was quoted as saying in the statement. As the main sponsor, Thai Beverages will also have a “range of marketing rights” for Everton products, “which will enable it to exploit the new partnership around the world,” the statement said. As a part of the deal, three young Thai soccer players will be selected to spend the whole of next season training at the Everton Academy, it said.

“For us there are no boundaries as we seek to expand the Everton business and we believe that the opportunities for the club will only grow with the support of Chang Beer,” Gregg was quoted as saying. Thai Beverages owner Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi was originally named in the Thai media as one of the possible investors in a plan by Thailand’s Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra to buy a 30 per cent stake in another English Premier League club, Liverpool, in a private deal. However, the plan was later modified by Thaksin, who proposed raising the $115 million needed to buy the stake through a state lottery. That plan also was scrapped after a public outcry. Everton is also based in the English city of Liverpool.