Falken tread global path with multi-year Liverpool deal
July 18 – Liverpool, in Hong Kong on the first leg of their pre-season tour, have announced Japanese firm Falken Tyres as a new global sponsor.
Football Marketing
Virgin Media adds sleeve sponsorship to shirt deal at Saints
July 18 – Southampton’s main club sponsor Virgin Media has added the shirt sleeve sponsorship to its package. The media brand will now have its logo on the front of the shirt and the newly created sleeve position.
Tempobet doubles up in Football League with Preston North End deal
July 17 – Online bookmaker Tempobet has signed a second shirt sponsorship deal in the English Football League, becoming principal partner at one of the Football League’s founding clubs Preston North End.
DFB trades in Mercedes-Benz for a new model VW
By Mark Baber
July 14 – The German football association (DFB) is trading in its Mercedes-Benz deal for a shiny new model from disgraced carmaker VW, reportedly worth €25-20 million per year. Mercedes have been the DFB’s main automotive sponsor since 1972.
Just win it. Adidas eat Nike’s lunch in Europe’s big competitions
July 13 – Nike may have been the dominant brand when it comes to winning major European leagues and titles over the past 11 years (Nike 37 Adidas 26), but last season Adidas wiped out the swoosh winning six out of seven major European tournaments.
DHL activate Man Utd sponsorship with UNITED.DELIVERED. campaign
July 13 – Manchester United sponsor DHL has activated a marketing campaign that invites Manchester United fans to host a match. DHL will deliver the match ball and the playing kits for the teams, wherever in the world the match is to be played.
Man Utd cut reliance on Sky and Virgin to launch TV channel on the web
July 11 – Manchester United has launched a new streaming service at mutv.com which will enable subscribers to sign up to the channel without having to go through a satellite subscription. The channel will only be available to subscribers in the UK and Ireland at the start.
McDonald’s adds to FIFA sponsor concerns with rumours it is going cold on Russia 2018
July 10 – With the World Cup in Russia less than a year away, one of FIFA’s top front-line sponsors, McDonald’s, have been in discussions about a possible withdrawal due to ethical concerns.
India stokes local sponsorship sales for U17 World Cup with Coal India deal
July 10 – It may not be a message for environmental sustainability, but it will help FIFA’s financial sustainability. Coal India has signed up as the third National Supporter for the U-17 World Cup by the Local Organising Committee (LOC).
QNET keeps ‘direct selling’ partnership with Man City in new 3-year deal
July 7 – Premier League Manchester City have renewed their global partnership with Asian direct selling company QNET for another three years to 2020.
TV scheduling row: Game, set and match to FIFA in Wimbledon clash
July 6 – FIFA says it will not back down after scheduling next year’s World Cup final kickoff in Russia on the same afternoon as the Wimbledon men’s tennis final.
Toyota race to start line with last-minute Gold Cup sponsorship deal
July 6 – With 48 hours to go before the kick-off of the Gold Cup at The Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey, CONCACAF have announced another last-minute sponsorship sale with Toyota coming on board as the Official Motor Vehicle of the CONCACAF Gold Cup.
Premier League pirates. English fans turn to illegal streaming to watch their teams
July 4 – Nearly half of Premier League fans have at some stage streamed a top-flight game online through an unauthorised provider, according to a survey conducted by the BBC.
Spurs join Chelsea on Nike roster in £30m kit deal
By Paul Nicholson
July 4 – Nike have added Premier League Tottenham Hotspur to their club kit supply roster in a multi-year deal that begins next season. The announcement was made formally at the launch of the club’s new playing strip.
Aston Villa bet on Terry to take them up. Unibet wager on Villa to get there
July 4 – He may not be everyone’s cup of tea and has courted controversy throughout his career but former England and Chelsea captain John Terry has resisted the temptation to try and join the exodus to China by signing a one-year deal with second-tier Aston Villa at the age of 36 for one final challenge.