Marketplace Roundup

McDonald's today confirmed that it has inked a multi-year renewal of its deal with Magic C Dwight Howard, extending a relationship that began in '08. Howard will support several McDonald's programs and initiatives in the coming months, including the QSR's sponsorship of the Vancouver Olympics. Financial terms were not available. This comes after McDonald's last week announced a multi-year sponsorship deal with Cavaliers F LeBron James (THE DAILY).

MLB Properties Sues Upper Deck For Using Team Logos

HITTING THE DECK: In N.Y., Michael O'Keeffe reports MLB Properties in a federal lawsuit filed yesterday accused Upper Deck of "trademark infringement for using team logos on baseball cards without permission." MLB Properties last year signed an exclusive agreement with Topps, and the suit contends that Upper Deck's '10 cards "improperly feature MLB and team logos." Upper Deck after the Topps deal was announced vowed that it would "continue to produce baseball cards, since it still had an agreement" with the MLBPA (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 2/2). MLB Properties also claims that Upper Deck is "'on the verge' of distributing several other fake lines." The suit asserts that Upper Deck owes MLB $2.4M and "seeks to halt sales of unauthorized cards" (N.Y. POST, 2/2).

WON'T YOU COME BACK? In San Diego, Tod Leonard noted Farmers Insurance offered "nothing but glowing praise" after title sponsoring the PGA Tour event this past weekend at Torrey Pines, but their future involvement has "yet to be determined." Farmers Insurance Senior VP Mark Toohey said, "Once the dust settles, we’re all going to sit down and collect our thoughts. We’ll evaluate how this went and make a determination regarding the future. You consider a tournament of this caliber, and I would think a decision would be made relatively soon. But I can’t define relative" (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 2/1).

RUNNING WITH THE DEVILS: In London, Jonathan Sibun reported Manchester United has "kicked off the search for a new beer sponsor to replace an existing deal with Budweiser," which has sponsored the club since '02. ManU has sent "promotional packages to brewers in a bid to attract new sponsorship," including soccer balls "branded with each of their own beer marques and Manchester United logos" (London TELEGRAPH, 1/31).

THINKING OUTSIDE THE BOX: Outdoor apparel manufacturer Realtree has partnered with the NFL and Reebok to develop the Open Field Collection, focused on hunting and fishing camouflage apparel with NFL team logos. The initial line features camo player jerseys, short- and long-sleeve T-shirts, a fleece hoodie and a canvas jacket (Realtree).