Manchester United Add Richard Branson's Virgin Billions to Growing Armyof Global Sponsors

Manchester United Add Richard Branson's Virgin Billions to Growing Armyof Global Sponsors​Manchester United haveannouncedVirgin Money as the club's Official Retail Financial Services Partner in the UK, bringing the subsidiary of Richard Branson's world famousbrand on board to be the latest corporate partner at Old Trafford.What it mean is that Virgin Money customers can have things like United credit cards or get various others perks,describedas having"exclusive access to a range of club-related rewards and benefits".Virgin say, "The deal is about real products, tailored to fit the fans. And real rewards that money can't buy."Welcome,@RichardBranson!@VirginMoney, our new UK Retail Financial Services Partner:https://t.co/ZsAUqtKfdlpic.twitter.com/r4y4oHcqea— Manchester United (@ManUtd)July 18, 2016Virgin Money is added to the veritable army of partners already linked with United thanks to Ed Woodward and his commercial team, from global courier firm DHL, to New Era and Chilean winemaker Casillero del Diablo - a hilariously wooden acting performance from Wayne Rooney in a commercial for the latter won't be forgotten in a hurry.More recently, United have paired up with 20thCentury Fox. That one is a relationship which has seen Rooney and co. appear in special movie trailers, with brilliant X-Men and Independence Day videos produced so far.Some, like Casillero del Diablo being the 'official wine partner' are far more quirky. United have an official noodle partner in Nissin Food Groups, and an official office equipment partner in Epson. There are no prizes for guessing that Kansai Paint is the official paint partner, while the club has an official telecommunications partners specifically for Azerbaijan in Bakcell.TheDaily Mailnotes that Virgin Money is actually United's 15th current financial partner, with specific companies linked with the club in various individual countries aroundthe world from Tanzania, Norway, Malta and Zimbabwe.Yet while this mass sponsorship seems ridiculous on the surface, it gives United a competitive edge when it comes to paying the biggest wages and the highest transfer fees. Without an official noodle partner, a potential world record deal for Paul Pogba wouldn't be anything like as straightforward.....