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German football club Schalke 04 (D2) announced on Monday (February 28th) the termination of its contract with its main sponsor, the Russian gas giant Gazprom, following the invasion of Ukraine by Russian troops. The club had already decided last week to erase the name and logo of Gazprom from its jerseys for the championship match on Saturday, two days after the Russian attack against Ukraine. The partnership linking the club and the Russian company, whose majority shareholder is the Russian state and which has also sponsored the Champions League since 2012, ran until 2025. It was to bring in 9 million euros per year for Schalke , the club from the city of Gelsenkirchen, a former historical stronghold of football in the Ruhr basin, which fell back to the second division last year. In the event of a rise in the Bundesliga, the contract provided for an increase in the allocation of up to 15 million per season. “ The financial capacity of the club is not affected by this decision. », assure Schalke, « the management of the club is confident of being able to present a new partner very soon ».
