Premier League toasts £40m deal with new beer partner Guinness

English football's top flight is toasting a £40m sponsorship deal with Guinness after the Diageo-owned brand saw off competition from Heineken.

Sky News has learnt that the Premier League has informed its 20 clubs, which include Everton, Manchester City and Sheffield United, that it is backing a £10m-a-year agreement beginning next season.

The deal, which has not yet been formally signed, represents a big financial uplift on the Premier League's existing partnership with Budweiser's owner, AB InBev.

Guinness has historically been more closely associated with promoting itself through an association with rugby union - through the sport's Premiership and Six Nations competitions - than football.

One Premier League club executive said they had been told the Guinness deal was valued at over £41m over its four-year duration.

Budweiser has been associated with the Premier League for the last five years, while it has also been a principal sponsor of the FA Cup.

The proposed agreement comes at a time of unprecedented scrutiny of the Premier League's finances after its failure to reach a redistribution settlement with the English Football League.

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This week's second reading of the Football Governance Bill represented another step towards the creation of an independent watchdog for the sport.

Richard Masters, the Premier League chief executive, has warned in the last fortnight that more intense regulation will risk damaging the English football pyramid.

The Premier League and Diageo declined to comment.