Air Asia sponsors England's professional referees

Malaysia-based budget airline AirAsia has announced it is to sponsor the professional football referees in England for three years. The exclusive deal with the Professional Game Match Officials Limited will see AirAsia display its logo on the sleeves of all referees officiating in English Premier League, Football League, League Cup, FA Cup and FA Vase matches.The PGMOL was established in 2001 and is responsible for the training, development and monitoring of an elite group of 19 referees and 50 assistant referees, as well as a national list of 57 referees and 182 assistant referees.

"With nearly 50 matches being played every week and a weekly average audience of nearly 100 million viewers across 200 territories this sponsorship is certainly a powerful global branding tool for us in enhancing our brand awareness," AirAsia chief executive officer Tony Fernandes said.