West Ham United have signed a shirt sponsorship deal with XL, a charter airline with links to Iceland, beginning from the start of next season. XL will pay the Barclays Premiership club about £2.5 million a season, more than three times the value of their present deal with Jobserve.

It is thought that the deal has contingencies in the event that the club are relegated at the end of the season. The London club announced in October that Umbro will be their new kit manufacturers from next season. XL, formerly known as Excel Airways, claim to be the fifth largest holiday company in the United Kingdom. The company has an annual turnover of more than £1 billion.

The deal is a boost for the club, who play Charlton Athletic at The Valley today. Alan Curbishley envisaged returning to Charlton in happier times, but an excruciating afternoon awaits the West Ham manager. The ties between the clubs extend beyond the fact that he has effectively swapped his post with Alan Pardew, his counterpart today, since last summer.

Curbishley haggled in a pub over £15 in wages to sign Pardew, a midfield player, for Charlton 16 years ago when his club were tenants at Upton Park, and Pardew’s managerial mentor was Keith Peacock, once assistant manager at Charlton and now in the same role at West Ham. A season later, Pardew scored the winning goal when the tenants upstaged their landlords and he took some Charlton coaching staff when he went to West Ham in October 2003 — when he was recommended for the post by Curbishley.

The oddities will extend to the sets of supporters applauding both managers, although Pardew might expect to receive an extra fillip from the West Ham fans who still question his dismissal three months ago.

Pardew was appointed at Charlton two weeks later, since when he has gained six points on his former team, yet they both remain in the bottom three of the Barclays Premiership. “I would like to think that I will get a decent [reception],” Curbishley said.

Curbishley was a television pundit on his only previous visit to The Valley since leaving after 15 years as manager in the summer. “I will only enjoy things if we get the result and there will be 24,000 people who hope I don’t,” he said.