Russian Football Union Boosted by Beer Sponsorship Deal

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Russian Football Union Boosted by Beer Sponsorship Deal

Reuters - The Russian Football Union (RFU) has signed a three-year sponsorship deal with brewing company Staryi Melnik ahead of next year's World Cup.

"We already have Coca-Cola and just added a beer company, so we should think of signing Stolichnaya Vodka as our next sponsor to give our players a greater choice of beverages," a smiling RFU president Vyacheslav Koloskov told a news conference on Thursday.

"Seriously speaking, this signing will help us in our preparation for the finals and paying out bonuses to our players based on their performances in Japan and South Korea," he added.

"We're confident of making the next round, where we should try to avoid Brazil, who look like the top team in their group.

"So we must finish first in our group and take on a team like Turkey. Then, we definitely have a better chance."

Russia were drawn in World Cup group H along with co-hosts Japan, Belgium and Tunisia.

In the round of 16, the top team in group H play the runners-up from group C – which includes Brazil, Turkey, China and Costa Rica – while the top team in group C faces the second-placed side in group H.

Staryi Melnik, which is owned by Turkey's Efes Pilsen, joins Nike, Coca-Cola, Tumen Oil Company and Siberian Airlines as the RFU's official sponsors.