Amateur Fylde coast football club joins Chelsea FC, PSG and Barcelona FC in announcing new AI sponsorship
“We look forward to a long partnership with the Club.”
An amateur Fylde coast football team has announced a bizarre new partnership with an AI brand ahead of the upcoming season.
Garstang FC recently has revealed that Founded.ai will serve as their new sleeve sponsor for the 2026/27 campaign in what is a unique move for a club playing in the 10th tier of the English football pyramid.
A software development company founded in 2021 and based in the town, Founded.ai provides pre-built artificial intelligence engines and machine learning expertise to help start-ups and enterprises embrace AI-driven products.
Garstang currently compete in the North West Counties Division One North, making the AI sponsorship a unique affiliation at that level of amateur football.
With the new sponsorship move, Garstang FC joins the likes of European footballing giants such as Chelsea (who recently named AI firm IFS as its principal and front-of-shirt partner), FC Barcelona, and Paris Saint-Germain (both of whom have partnered with Google to name Gemini their official consumer AI assistant) in announcing AI-based affiliations.
Other English teams such as Crystal Palace (who signed an agreement making the AI company Temporal their main shirt sponsor starting in the 2026/27 season) and Fulham (who partnered with professional services AI platform Harvey as an official legal partner) as well as Saudi outfit Al Nassr (regional infrastructure and AI platform Humain) have done similar deals.
‘Values and tradition’
On this announcement, Garstang FC Chairman Adrian Wilding said: "It's great to welcome founded.ai on board. Jonathan and Julie are both very enthusiastic about their business and football which is infectious. We look forward to working with them going forwards."
Founded.ai CEO and Founder, Jonathan Clarke added: "Garstang FC has a long proud history, going back to 1885. They have an excellent set up, continually striving to improve facilities for fans to enjoy a local game.
“They call themselves ‘The town team at the heart of the community’ and, as a local business, based in Garstang, we are proud and delighted to be able to support their values and tradition. We have had an opportunity to watch both league and friendly matches at the Riverside, and have thoroughly enjoyed the experience each time.
“We look forward to a long partnership with the Club.”