Getir, the rapid grocery delivery firm with plans to depart the UK, has a multimillion pound outstanding debt to Premier League giants Tottenham Hotspur Football Club.
The Turkish firm, which has a three-year training kit sponsorship deal with Spurs, owes close to £5m to the club, according to Sky News’ Mark Kleinmann.
Getir once commanded an $11.8bn (£9.3bn) valuation during a pandemic-era boom but last month revealed plans to ditch a slew of its international markets, including the UK, Germany, the Netherlands and the US, after demand slowed.
The delivery app is currently looking to access funding from its biggest shareholder, Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth fund Mubadala, and G Squared to help with the withdrawal.
It has already left Italy, France and Spain in its bid to slash losses.
City A.M. revealed last week Getir had left some of its UK suppliers with huge unpaid bills as it scrambles for the exit.
Complete Assets, which Getir hired to help offload assets and recover cash, said it has been left “in a six figure deficit of over £150,000.”
The firms withdrawal has put around 1,500 jobs at risk, according to Sky News.
Founded in 2015, Getir burst onto the scene during Covid-19 as customers trapped at home sought deliveries in minutes.
However, valuations of across the industry have collapsed as demand for rapid grocery deliveries tapered off. Rivals Deliveroo and Just Eat have both announced over 2,000 job cuts between them in the last year amid the downturn.
The slowdown has led to consolidation across the sector, with Getir snapping up rival Gorillas in a $1.2bn deal in late 2022.
Getir and Tottenham Hotspur were approached for comment.