MOSCOW (AP) Russian state-controlled gas company Gazprom has signed a deal to sponsor FIFA from 2015 through 2018, the year Russia hosts the World Cup.
President Vladimir Putin presided over the signing ceremony, which took place Saturday and was broadcast on state television. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The agreement was signed by FIFA President Sepp Blatter and Gazprom chief executive Alexei Miller in Sochi, the Black Sea city preparing to host the Winter Games in February. Some of the 2018 World Cup games also will be played in Sochi's stadium.
Gazprom, the world's largest natural gas producer and a publicly traded company, also is a major sponsor of the Olympics. Its total expenditure on the Sochi games is about $3 billion.
