Despite the current volatile climate of Barclays following the resignation of chief executive Bob Diamond, the bank are expected to announce a new deal with the Premier League "in the coming weeks".



 According to John Reynolds of Marketing Magazine, a "bumper" new deal is very much on the horizon - despite the public antipathy towards the scandal-hit bank:
"An announcement on the estimated £35m-a-year-plus deal is expected in the coming weeks. Barclays has been the title sponsor of the Premier League since 2004, with Barclaycard the title sponsor between 2001 and 2004."

The deal for sponsorship of English football's top league is an incredibly lucrative contract, with matches broadcast in 212 territories around the world, working with 80 different broadcasters. The TV audience for Premier League games is 4.7bn, and with Sky and BT spending £3bn  in securing broadcasting rights, the marketing opportunity for a dedicated league sponsor is enormous.

The news comes as a welcome distraction for the embattled bank, with the press and politicians currently poring over the recent resignation of chief executive Bob Diamond after revelations over lending rates.

According to the BBC:
Regulators in the US and UK fined Barclays £290m ($450m) for attempting to rig Libor and Euribor, the interest rates at which banks lend to each other, which underpin trillions of pounds worth of financial transactions.

Diamond, who made £20m in salary last year (and with terms of severance package as yet unknown) fell on his sword as "the unacceptable face" of banking  - said by the then business secretary Lord Mandelson in 2010.

Marcus Agius, who announced his resignation on Monday in an attempt to conduct anger away from the bank and its chief, will now stay on as full-time chairman and lead the search for a new chief executive.


In a statement, Diamond said:
"No decision over that period was as hard as the one that I make now to stand down as Chief Executive. The external pressure has reached a level that risks damaging the franchise – I cannot let that happen. I am deeply disappointed that the impression created by the events of last week about what Barclays and its people stand for could not be further from the truth.

The storm is on-going and the Treasury have ordered inquiries into the scandal. Despite Barclay's biggest marketing interest now secured, it will provide but a crumb of comfort to senior figures at Barclays.