EVERTON have suspended all their sponsorship ties to oligarch Alisher Usmanov amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The move follows a decision made on Tuesday by the EU to freeze Usmanov’s assets and ban him from travel.
Everton have cut sponsorship ties with Alisher Usmanov
The EU were critical of Usmanov’s pro-Kremlin stance and his ties to Vladimir Putin so have now imposed sanctions, with Everton following suit.
Usmanov has three companies involved with commercial sponsorship at Everton in varying degrees.
The club released a statement which reads: “Everyone at Everton remains shocked and saddened by the appalling events unfolding in Ukraine. This tragic situation must end as soon as possible, and any further loss of life must be avoided.
“The players, coaching staff, and everyone working at Everton is providing full support to our (Ukrainian) player Vitaliy Mykolenko and his family and will continue to do so.
“The club can confirm that it has suspended with immediate effect all commercial sponsorship arrangements with the Russian companies USM, Megafon and Yota.”
Usmanov did have a £6m deal to sponsor The Toffee’s training ground and his company Megafon was the sponsor of Everton Women.
The billionaire also has a £30 million first-refusal agreement in place over the naming rights of the new stadium.
And Usmanov’s influence at Everton does not stop there since he has close business ties with owner Farhad Moshiri and sits on the Everton board.
He even played a role in the appointment of Frank Lampard and participated in his interview for the job, according to The Telegraph.
Usmanov previously held a 30 per cent stake in Arsenal which he sold in 2018.
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