Soccer United Marketing today announced that Johnson & Johnson has signed on as an official partner of MLS and the U.S. Soccer Federation. The partnership includes the U.S. men's, women's and youth national teams. Activation begins with tonight's FC Dallas-Union game. J&J's consumer brands will be featured in field-level signage at matches played in the U.S. and will integrate the partnerships into their marketing plans, including ads, retail, grassroots and PR (
MLS). BLOOMBERG NEWS' Eben Novy-Williams noted J&J, which gets the designation as MLS' official healthcare sponsor, is the "third major agreement for the league this month." Audi signed on as the
official automobile partner of MLS, while Mondelez Int'l has come on board as the
league's official snack. MLS Business Ventures President & Managing Dir Gary Stevenson indicated that J&J's brands, which include Neutrogena, Band-Aid, Neosporin and Aveeno, "provide unique opportunities" for the league and USSF. Stevenson: "They can deliver the MLS and U.S. Soccer message into grocery stores, into drug stores, and homes that quite frankly we can't get into." Novy-Williams noted J&J was "one of eight second-tier sponsors" for last year's FIFA World Cup in Brazil, but in January decided "not to renew" the deal. The MLS agreement is J&J's "only official partnership with a major U.S. sports league" (
BLOOMBERG NEWS, 3/19).
SOMETHING TO SNACK ON: MLS Senior VP/Global Sponsorships David Wright on Thursday discussed the league’s new multiyear partnership with Mondelez, saying the snack company will be “very active at retail showcasing MLS to consumers throughout the country across their portfolio of brands.” Wright noted that Mondelez, which produces Wheat Thins, Oreos, Ritz, and Chips Ahoy, among other snack brands, is “doubling down” on soccer after signing a deal in '13 with U.S. Soccer. Wright: “This is a group of sophisticated marketers who understand our sport. ... Mondelez is committed to telling stories across digital and broadcast channels” (THE DAILY).
