Michigan State Univ. basketball coach Tom Izzo yesterday confirmed that the team "will wear a special camouflage uniform for its Nov. 11 season opener" against the Univ. of North Carolina as part of the Quicken Loans Carrier Classic in San Diego. A report by KTVI-Fox in St. Louis "showed what appears to be camouflage MSU jerseys" during a report "profiling the company that sewed World Series patches onto the St. Louis Cardinals' jerseys." Izzo noted he has yet to actually see the special jerseys (FREEP.com, 10/25).
PLANTING ITS FLAG: MARKETING WEEK's Lara O'Reilly reported the NFL is "looking to triple its UK fanbase in the next five years by partnering with more 'quintessentially British' brands, expanding its merchandise range and forming a London-based team." NFL U.K. Managing Dir Alistair Kirkwood said that the league "aims to become 'engrained' in the British sporting landscape ... by 2016." NFL U.K. Commercial Dir Marc Armstrong added that the "'key thing' the league looks for in a partner is activation of their sponsorship." O'Reilly noted the NFL brand will be "further extended in the UK in 2012 through merchandise partnerships with Nike and New Era" (MARKETINGWEEK.co.uk, 10/25).
RALLY TIME: St. Louis-area Cardinal Glennon Children's Foundation Exec Dir Dan Buck appeared on Fox Business yesterday to discuss the Cardinals’ “Rally Squirrel” and how the foundation is benefiting from the sale of merchandise depicting the squirrel. Buck said. “We’ve sold about 28,000 of the T-shirts, several thousand of the hats and we’ve raised almost $280,000 to build a new playground above our Bob Costas Cancer Center.” Buck said the Cardinals and Anheuser-Busch have “stepped up and made it really a risk-free endeavor for us. We bought the first 10,000 shirts and several thousand hats with a grant from Anheuser-Busch and from there we've had to remanufacture more and more hats but, to see that their $30,000 grant grown into a $280,000 community-wide effort, it shows the power and support of Anheuser-Busch and what a great philanthropic community we have here in St. Louis” (Fox Business, 10/25).
NAMES & FACES: China-based shoe company Peak has signed Nets G Anthony Morrow and Rockets F Marqus Blakely to endorsement deals. Peak currently has 10 NBAers signed to deals, including Mavericks G Jason Kidd (THE DAILY)....MusclePharm has signed Patriots WR Chad Ochocinco "to a one-year endorsement deal that will help it strengthen its social media abilities" (BOSTON HERALD, 10/26).
