Portsmouth's Spinnaker Tower to return to original white colour as deal ends

Portsmouth's Spinnaker Tower will return to its original white colour scheme (left), having been blue and gold since 2015

Portsmouth's Spinnaker Tower is to return to its original white colour after a £3.5m sponsorship deal ended.

The 170m (560ft) structure was painted blue and gold in 2015 to mark the council's deal with airline Emirates.

The initial proposed colours of red and white, synonymous with football rivals Southampton, had caused local anger.

The council said the tower would be repainted white next year as part of its "routine maintenance schedule".

The local authority said it did not anticipate any new sponsorship deals for the "foreseeable future" due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The Emirates branding will remain in place until early summer 2021 after the sponsorship deal ended "as scheduled" on 30 June this year, Portsmouth City Council added.

Emirates and Portsmouth City Council made a U-turn on the initial red and white design

The authority and airline, which uses red and white in its logo, made a U-turn on the initial planned colour scheme after thousands of people signed a petition opposing the move.

However, Emirates had already spent thousands of pounds on more than 100 litres (22 gallons) of red paint so it was given away to community groups in Hampshire, including Petersfield and Fareham football clubs.

The tower was renamed the Emirates Spinnaker Tower and repainted gold and blue - the traditional colour of the city of Portsmouth and its football team - in time for the 2015 America's Cup World Series event.