Schalke 04 removes the name of a Russian company from the team shirts
The prestigious German club Schalke 04 announced that it will withdraw the name and logo of its main sponsor, the leading Russian oil company "Gazprom", from its shirts in the wake of the Russian military operation in Ukraine.
"In light of the events, developments and escalation in the past days, Schalke 04 has decided to remove the logo of the main sponsor Gazprom from the shirts," said the club, which is competing in the second division this season.
He added that instead of the name of the sponsor, the players will have the team's name on their shirt, adding that the decision was made "after talks" with Gazprom's main subsidiary, Gazprom Germania.
Since 2007, the company has sponsored one of Germany's oldest and most popular clubs.
Earlier Thursday, Matthias Varnig, the German CEO of the operator of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline connecting Russia with Germany, resigned from the club's advisory board, after it was targeted by US sanctions.
On Wednesday, the United States announced sanctions against Nord Stream 2 AG and its main leaders, including Farneg, who was appointed by Gazprom in 2019 to represent the company at Schalke 04.
Warnig was previously a member of the Stasi secret police in communist East Germany, before becoming a gas executive after the fall of the Berlin Wall.
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