ISTANBUL

Turkish football giants Galatasaray signed a five-year cooperation agreement with Russian oil company Lukoil at Turk Telekom Arena in Istanbul Thursday.

Galatasaray's Vice President Abdurrahim Albayrak, board member Ali Durust and Alexander Terletskiy, Lukoil senior executive in Turkey, attended the signing ceremony.

Durust said the club signed a five-year deal with the Russian company that would also enable Galatasaray fans to get a discount on their shopping. The club will also get a share from the discount.

"We expect the fans to contribute and increase the brand value of Galatasaray. We are expecting 10 million Turkish liras ($4.3 million) in total as revenue," he said.

Durust said the sponsorship deal was very important for the club. "Our biggest effort is the football team's kit advertisement next season. I hope we will give good news about that soon," he added.

Terletskiy said the Russian company, the club and fans would all benefit from the deal.

About sponsoring the club's basketball team, Terletskiy said, "We are open to any and every cooperation. Basketball is on our list and we are discussing with the board of the club about what we can do," he added.

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