NEWCASTLE UNITED have struck an agreement that will see them end their shirt sponsorship deal with Chinese betting firm Fun88 this summer, two years earlier than initially planned.

The early end to the current arrangement will enable the Magpies to secure new headline sponsors for the 2023-24 season, with a future deal likely to dwarf the Fun88 arrangement, which was agreed during Mike Ashley’s reign.

Newcastle’s current kit sponsorship deal is worth around £6.5m-a-year, which is one the lowest figures for any club in the Premier League. In comparison, Liverpool’s current deal with Standard Chartered is worth around £40m-a-year.

The difference is stark, and has huge implications when it comes to the amount the Magpies are permitted to spend under the Premier League’s profit and sustainability regulations.

The club’s search for a new sponsor is likely to be focused on Saudi Arabia and the Middle East, with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund now majority owners of the club.

Newcastle’s kit manufacturing deal with Castore was signed in the summer of 2021, but at this stage, there is not believed to be any plans to bring that agreement to an early end.