Source: Myplanet.ne.jp

Manchester United's season has taken another blow as British mobile operator and global telecom power Vodafone put an end to its sponsorship of the team's kit - an iconic pairing of two marketing giants - two years early. The announcement came a day after the Red Devils failed to score and earned only a draw with Villareal in the Champions League, leaving it to the last match of the group rounds to decide if Ferguson's team goes through to the next round. Vodafone has instead opted to sponsor the Champions League itself, freeing the company from being tied to the fortunes of any of Europe's big teams.

After wins the last two years by Porto and Liverpool in the league, mirroring the lukewarm fortunes of many of Europe's supposed power teams like Man Utd, Real Madrid, the Milan sides, Juventus and Arsenal, Vodafone may be taking the view that no team is a franchise any longer. Global branding when tied to teams of varying fortunes and increasingly bad press around players and managers who squabble may be too risky for any brand that may also be having less than great fortunes in its own business.

This isn't the first such move by Vodafone. The mobile operator pulled the plug on David Beckham back during the summer as his stock fell as a player and personality.

It isn't clear where this leaves the financial projections of the Glazers, who took over the team this summer and surely didn't expect to lose £18 million in one go as will happen with this move.