Delta Air Lines has announced its official return as a sponsor of the Atlanta Falcons, eight years after dropping a past sponsorship of the football team.

The Atlanta-based airline said it will be the official airline of the Falcons, Atlanta United and Mercedes-Benz Stadium for the next five years through the 2021 season.

Part of the deal is the already-unveiled Sky360 Club at the football stadium. The airline did not disclose how much the sponsorship is worth.

Delta already sponsors the Atlanta Braves and the Atlanta Hawks, and says this move makes it a sponsor of all of the city’s major professional sports teams.

But the airline pulled out of its sponsorship of the Falcons in 2009, saying at the time that it was aligning more with baseball.

That same year, AirTran Airways launched a sponsorship of the Falcons and painted one of its planes black and red with a bird logo on the tail. After Southwest  Airlines acquired AirTran, it became the official airline of the Falcons.

But even while another airline sponsored the team, Delta continued to carry the Falcons on charter flights.

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AJC Business reporter Kelly Yamanouchi keeps you updated on the latest news about Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, Delta Air Lines and the airline industry in metro Atlanta and beyond. You'll find more on myAJC.com, including these stories:

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In other Mercedes-Benz Stadium news:

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