Friday, February 25, 2022 at 2:21 PM• Tom Rofekamp • Last update: 14:22

Manchester United have terminated their sponsorship deal with Aeroflot, the club said in an official statement. The Russian airline has been serving as the regular carrier of the Red Devils† The reason is the invasion of Ukraine by Russian troops. United thus follows the example of Schalke 04, which already decided on Thursday to remove the name of the also Russian main sponsor Gazprom from the shirt.

“We share the concerns of our fans around the world and express our sympathy for those affected,” United wrote in the statement. The contract between Aeroflot and Manchester United ran until 2023. In 2015, the English superpower extended the original deal. United had little choice but to terminate the contract, as British Prime Minister Boris Johnson had banned Aeroflot from operating in the United Kingdom. United did not use the airline anymore before the Champions League match with Atlético Madrid (1-1) on Wednesday.

Official. Manchester United have withdrawn Aeroflot’s sponsorship rights: “We share the concerns of our fans around the world and extend our sympathies to those affected”. † #mufc

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) February 25, 2022

Schalke delivered a message similar to that of the English on Thursday. “Given the events, developments and escalation of recent days, Schalke 04 has decided to remove the letters of main sponsor Gazprom from the shirts. This choice was made after talks between Schalke and Gazprom Germania took place. Gazprom will be replaced by the letters Schalke 04.”

In addition to losing the main lender, the Russian invasion of Ukraine is affecting even more the King’s Blue† Matthias Warning, Gazprom deputy and Schalke board member, resigned. Warning is considered a close confidant of Russian President Vladimir Putin. UEFA is also under pressure in connection with its cooperation with Gazprom. The European Football Association did announce in a statement on Friday morning that the final of the Champions League would be moved from Saint Petersburg to Paris, but did not comment on the sponsorship deal with the natural gas company.