In modern day football, shirt sponsors are seemingly getting more important than ever before.
They’re a key source of revenue and are worth millions of pounds to clubs, especially if your club has an iconic player wearing the jersey, think Lee Trundle or Leon Britton as was the case for the Swans.
Over the years we’ve seen club shirts dominated by casino sites.
In fact, the Swans have been sponsored by some form of online gambling brand since the start of the 2009 season, aside from the three seasons GWFX were sponsors (2013-2016).
It’s a lucrative market and perhaps no surprise that around 70% of the current batch of EFL Championship teams have gambling sponsors.
While they are important in terms of finances, they can also make or break a kit.
Since the Swans first welcomed sponsors the front of their shirts for the 1984-95 season, they have in the main had some pretty cool designs.
But what are the best sponsors to ever grace the Swans shirt?
Gulf
From the start of the 1993/94 season, Gulf were the Swans sponsors and remained so until the end of the 1995/96 season.
The Matchwinner and Le Coq Sportif Swansea City shirts during that time were very popular and to this day they remain favourites of many fans.
That period was a nostalgic one too, from the Swans lifting the Autoglass Trophy at Wembley Stadium to relegation from Division Two just 2 seasons later.
Towards the end of their stint as sponsors, Gulf saw the club go through its most difficult time, enduring relegation in the 1995/96 season – but at the very least the shirt looked good!
RE/MAX
Estate agents RE/MAX became the club’s sponsors in 2004/05 in a one year deal, which turned out to be an historic one for both club and sponsor.
Not only was promotion secured to League One, kick-starting the long upward journey to the Premier League, it was also the final season spent at the club’s home since 1912, the Vetch Field.
The sponsor stood out on the Bergoni made home shirt, which is still a favourite among fans these days, as the likes of Lee Trundle, Roberto Martinez and Leon Britton took the team to promotion on the very last day of the season at Bury.
To round off a memorable season, the Swans also won the FAW Premier Cup beating Wrexham 2-1, in what was the last ever game to be played at the Vetch Field on 11 May 2005.
32Red
The first time the Swans ever had a gambling related sponsor was for the 2009/10 season, when online casino 32Red adorned the Swansea City Umbro shirt.
Whilst success on the field didn’t materialise until the following season, a precedent had been set, which saw the start of the casino money rolling in.
Coupled with a return to the English top flight for Swansea, the simplicity of the 2010/11 Umbro shirt certainly means it will go down with many Jacks as one of the best home jerseys the club has had.
Again, much of that is to do with the glorious season on the pitch where Brendan Rodgers got the team playing scintillating football, that first introduced by Martinez, finishing third in the Championship and beating Reading 4-2 in the Playoff Final.
It was the final year the club spent with Umbro before promotion to the Premier League club saw them sign a five season long deal with Adidas.
Since then, the club have continued their association with gambling companies and despite relegation from the Premier League, the team are starting to recapture the brand of football that took them there in the first place.
Whether or not they can secure Premier League status once again remains to be seen, but there is little doubt that gambling companies are set to be on the club’s jersey for some time yet.