The club logo of top Spanish soccer team Real Madrid won’t feature the Christian cross on clothing sold in parts of the Middle East under a regional deal because of cultural sensitivities.
A retailing group in the United Arab Emirates, Marka, has been given exclusive manufacturing and distribution rights to sell the team’s products in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman, according to Reuters.
But Marka’s vice chairman, Khaled al-Mheiri, said the retailer has intentionally picked a version of Real Madrid’s logo that doesn’t feature a Christian cross due to cultural sensitivities. The original logo features a small Christian cross at the top of a crown.
“We have to be sensitive towards other parts of the Gulf that are quite sensitive to products that hold the cross,” he said.
The six countries in the Middle East where Marka will sell its products are all Muslim-majority.
The regional deal grants Marka the rights to sell clothing such as T-shirts, polo shirts and swimwear all featuring the soccer club’s name and logo. Sales are due to start in March.
Interestingly, the club’s Christian cross in the logo has already been altered once before. In 2014, Real Madrid removed the cross to to appease its new sponsor, the National Bank of Abu Dhabi.