Russian Premier League outfit Zenit St Petersburg have received a whopping offer to change their name to ‘Zenit Burger King, ‘ according to reports in Russia.
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Burger Rus LLC wrote to Zenit president Alexander Dyukov offering the “one-time sponsorship” deal.
The offer was leaked by Russian papers and quickly picked up by global media, with the United Kingdom press noting drily that, if the document was genuine, Zenit would probably have refused to change the name of the side to “Zenit Burger King” or “Zenit St Petersburger King”.
“The company would like to strengthen communication with St Petersburgers through cooperation with a symbol of the city”. Clubs such as Saturn and Moscow Torpedo have previously carried the names of Ren TV and RG respectively in their titles. Red Bull are the most famous example, with teams in New York, Salzburg and Leipzig all bearing the brand’s name.
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The letter, which Zenit are yet to confirm is real, is written in Russian and states that the franchise wants to purchase the naming rights for the club for the fee of 500m roubles, although any agreement would have to be approved by the Russian Football Union [RFS] before going ahead.
