A deal for Visit Ghana to become the club’s new primary shirt sponsor has stalled

Sunderland remain in discussions over a new front-of-shirt sponsor for the current campaign.

Despite an initial agreement being reached with Visit Ghana to take over from W88, the deal has not been signed off by the Ghanian government and it's understood that the Black Cats are moving forward with other options as a result. Discussions have remained ongoing with other potential partners throughout the process, and as it stands Sunderland are operating under the assumption that the Visit Ghana deal will not proceed.

While Sunderland are hopeful that a sponsor will be finalised in the not-too-distant future with talks advanced, club sources have stressed that they are determined to ensure that a deal fully reflects their value as a Premier League and European club.

The club remains in dialogue with Visit Ghana over a potential partnership but say communication and engagement of the front-of-shirt deal has 'slowed significantly' in recent times.

A club spokesperson said: "We have held positive discussions with Visit Ghana and the Government of Ghana over the past six months regarding a proposed front-of-shirt partnership.

"Our ongoing discussions had resulted in an agreement being reached, with government representatives involved in the proposed partnership even announcing the deal publicly.

"Since that point, however, we have not received the formal approval from the Government of Ghana required to proceed, and communication and engagement has slowed significantly. Given the lack of approval and clarity on the Government’s position, we are now working on the basis that the proposed partnership will not proceed."

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Strong commercial revenues are vital for Sunderland's long-term future in the Premier League, with the division's new Squad Cost Ratio rules limiting club's playing budget to 85% of their revenue. For teams competing in UEFA tournaments, this drops to 70%. The Black Cats announced crypto casino and sports betting platform Shuffle as a sleeve sponsor last week, and are in talks over a number of different assets as they bid to grow their revenue.

A resolution is expected on the front-of-shirt sponsor but the view behind the scenes is that the deal is too important to rush as the club bids to capitalise on its recent success and rapidly-growing profile.

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