Barcelona’s jersey for the upcoming 2017/18 season has been leaked online according to multiple reports online and on social networking site, Twitter. The design isn’t like any of their recent designs and features the logo of their new shirt sponsor: Rakuten.
With the club reverting to their jerseys donning the stripes rather than the hoops, the new jersey is a whole new design we haven’t seen from the Spanish giants before. The biggest change is that the stripes on the jersey aren’t symmetrical anymore.
Having kept the same colour scheme in that red and dark blue combination, the Catalans have stripes in the centre of the jersey; the stripes get thinner as it moves towards the side of the jersey towards the underarms.
And the biggest change when compared to this season's jersey, is the inclusion of the new shirt sponsor's logo. Rakuten signed on with Barcelona for four years earlier this winter in a move that could make Barcelona the richest club in the world - overtaking rivals Real Madrid. They also have the option to extend the deal for a further year.
Barcelona will earn £188m in the duration of the deal with the Japanese online giants – who own two sports teams on their own. The e-commerce giants employ roughly 13,000 people in Japan and are expected to achieve a turnover of almost £15 billion in the first nine months of their current financial year.
Speaking to the press after signing the lucrative deal last month, Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu said that the deal was going to lift Barcelona to an ever higher pedestal. "We are delighted with our agreement with Rakuten, a global brand in innovation whose experience and know-how in the fields of big data, communications and e-commerce will contribute to the future success of FC Barcelona," he said.
“This agreement puts us at the forefront of sports club sponsorships, which has always been an objective for the current Board of Directors. We hope this partnership between Rakuten and FC Barcelona brings unparalleled sporting and commercial success and helps the club achieve its goal of being a reference point worldwide."
Barcelona are currently second in the La Liga table – six points behind arch-rivals Real Madrid. And they host local rivals Espanyol at the Camp Nou on the weekend before welcoming Hercules for game two of the round of 32 of the Copa del Rey.
