Seattle sings $4m jersey deal with Microsoft

They are still 10 months away from their first MLS kickoff, but the Sounders just got a large investor. Microsoft has signed on to be the official jersey sponsor of the new Sounders, however don't expect to see the four-color floating paper. Instead, 'Xbox 360 LIVE' will appear on the front of the kit. The five year deal is worth $4m annually.

This is not a huge surprise as one of the main investors in the club is Paul Allen, i.e. the Chairman of Microsoft, but it is still a big move for the club. The $4m figure places them on the upper end of MLS jersey deals (only LA's deal appears to be worth more). It also means that their entire MLS salary is covered with about $1.7m left over. That's some good starting money for a designated player.

"We all felt the best place to start in Seattle was Microsoft," co-owner Joe Roth said. "It's an international company but also a local company, which is what soccer should be."

With 16,000 season tickets already sold, a solid shirt sponsor and the ability to take some players from their USL side, Seattle might just break the expansion team curse.