Visit Rwanda has announced a new partnership with English Premier League football club, Aston Villa as the club’s Principal Partner, Official Tourism Partner and Official Coffee Provider.
Aston Villa has described the partnership as “the most important sponsorship deal in the history of the football club.” The multi-year shirt sponsorship deal reportedly worth £20m per year will see the Rwandan tourist board replace Betano on the front of Villa’s men’s, women’s and academy shirts.
“This sponsorship is a powerful expression of Rwanda’s ambition to engage global audiences through one of the world’s most influential platforms and position our country as a destination to visit, invest and do business. Bringing together the Land of a Thousand Hills and the City of a Thousand Trades celebrates a shared commitment to enterprise, innovation and ambition,” said Janet Karemera, Chief Executive Officer of Rwanda Convention Bureau (RCB).
“This is a very exciting partnership for Aston Villa Football Club and a symbol of the club’s continuing expansion and growth into international markets. There is a great range and depth of opportunities for collaboration, learning and innovation and we are looking forward to working with Visit Rwanda to deliver meaningful activations through tourism, investment and sporting development,” said Francesco Calvo, President of Business Operations at Aston Villa.
Visit Rwanda has previously been in partnership with other football clubs including Arsenal, Bayern Munich, Paris St-Germain and Atletico Madrid; with Arsenal ending their eight-year partnership at the conclusion of the 2025-26 season.
