HMD becomes official smartphone partner of FC Barcelona

HMD just announced it is becoming FC Barcelona's official smartphone partner. The company will support the men's club and Barcelona Femeni, the women's team.

The announcement also revealed that teams from other sports will be involved in the partnership, including basketball, futsal, handball and roller hockey.

The partnership was revealed by Saul Peregrina, the hairdresser of Lamine Yamal, the 17-year-old wunderkind and future star of the Catalan team. The barber cut the HMD logo next to a Barcelona crest, formally announcing the partnership.

The deal is initially for three years, and HMD will advertise its smartphones on the digital panels at the Olympic Stadium, where FC Barcelona currently plays. Once the team moves to its renovated home at Camp Nou, the ads will appear there as well.

Later, the partnership will extend towards "a number of digital-first content pieces to excite fans and keep partnership visibility levels high," read the official press release.

Before HMD FC Barcelona had a different smartphone partner in Oppo. There was a number of FC Barcelona-themed Oppo phones including the likes of F1 Plus and Reno 10x Zoom, but lately, the Chinese smartphone maker has been partnering with UEFA to promote its devices during the Champions League tournament.