London's Wembley Stadium and U.K. communications firm EE have agreed to a six-year sponsorship deal, but the name of the venue will not change. The deal, which will make Wembley a more connected stadium, will see EE become the lead brand partner beginning with the League Cup Final on Sunday (FA). In London, Nic Fildes reported the deal is worth £25M ($42M). The arches of Wembley Stadium "will bear corporate branding for the first time." At a cost of more than £4M ($6.7M) a year, it is the largest venue sponsorship deal since O2 agreed to pay £6M a year to "rebadge what was the Millennium Dome as a concert venue." The deal "will see the stadium adopt EE’s aqua and yellow branding" and will carry its logo on the outer shell of the building. It will also now formally be called “The Wembley Stadium connected by EE.” Fears that the company might look to change the name of the stadium to “WemblEE” have "proved unfounded" (LONDON TIMES, 2/26).
MAKING A CONNECTION: The PA noted the deal "is not a naming rights deal." The deal will see ''technology road map'' making 4G coverage, Wi-Fi and mobile payment solutions "available to fans who go to the venue" (PA, 2/26). MARKETING WEEK's Sebastian Joseph reported the deal "also includes the launch of the first bespoke app developed for the stadium’s visitors." Spectators "will be able to access content linked as they watch matches as well as receive updates on stadium and travel news." Additionally, EE customers "will benefit from exclusive ticketing and marketing initiatives from late March'' (MARKETING WEEK, 2/26).
