On 2 June 2008, Aston Villa announced that, instead of a commercial sponsor, their shirts for the upcoming season would advertise Acorns Childrens Hospice, a charity that offers year-round care and bereavement services through its three locations in the West Midlands.While other clubs had used their shirts to promote charity - such as Barcelona, whose shirts bear the UNICEF logo - Villa were the first (and to date, only) Premier League club to negotiate such a deal. The charity replaced gambling website 32Red.com, whose prior sponsorship reportedly netted Villa close to £2 million annually.
The club and its players have been active supporters of Acorns since 2006, including fundraising efforts and player visits. Villa later extended the deal for 2009-10. While the club will continue supporting the charity, they are working to secure a commercial sponsor for the 2010-11 season, with Villa insiders reporting that it will be social networking site Twitter.
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