The public’s ever-intensifying interest in football and the increased professionalism in other sports has made sport sponsorship a £4.9bn (6.7bn euro) economy in Europe.

According to a report by International Marketing Reports, called Driving Business Through Sport 2007, the industry has grown by 37 per cent since 2000, with the financial services sector emerging as the largest investor in sport.

Football receives more sponsorship cash than any other sport, accounting for 38 per cent (£1.31bn, 1,87m euro) of overall expenditure. Motor sport comes in second with a market share of 32 per cent (£1.1bn, 1,56bn euro).

In the UK, the financial services sector accounts for 22 per cent of all sports sponsorship, ahead of alcohol and information technology companies, which both have a 9 per cent share.

Simon Rines, one of the authors of the report, said: “Sports sponsorship is maturing as a market. Barclays, for example, views its English Premier League title sponsorship as a global opportunity to develop its brand awareness and image, given the international interest in the competition.

“Its £21.5m per year rights fee is seen as good value, when compared to what could be achieved through investing the same amount in advertising.”

Europe’s biggest sponsor is currently Deutsche Telecom, which spends an estimated 90m euro (£63m) on sponsorship rights fees, while the UK’s largest sponsor is Vodafone with an annual spend of £31.5m (45m euro).