GILLINGHAM Football Club has fizzed up its income by signing a £100,000 deal with a national brewer.

Courage has paid the money up front for a five-year contract that gives it exclusive rights to sell its beer, lager and cider brands at Priestfield Stadium, including the banqueting and conference suite.

The latest deal, one of the largest in club history, follows recent sponsorship partnerships with the Kent Messenger Group, Mhs Homes, Kent Reliance Building Society and other local businesses.

The Gills deal is one of several Courage has negotiated with professional football clubs, including Charlton Athletic, Crystal Palace and Millwall. It is also involved in greyhound and other sporting venues.

Courage's business development manager Dougie Dick welcomed the deal, saying it gave the brewer a valuable marketing and sales opportunity for its Fosters, John Smiths, Kronenburg 1664 and Strongbow brands.

He expects sales to be strong on match days but the conference and banqueting facilities were particularly attractive to Courage. "They are first-class," said Mr Dick.

Paul Scally, club chairman, said it was good deal. "We looked at three or four brewers and the overall package over five years was so significantly better," he said. "It was the right package for us."

He said the conference and banqueting centre was now contributing significantly to the club's finances, and within a year or two, he expected it to finance the overheads of the football business.