Citi-Wachovia Deal Could Impact Charlotte's PGA Tour Event
The changing landscape of the banking industry continues to impact professional golf, with news this morning that the banking operations of Charlotte-based Wachovia will be acquired by Citigroup for $1 per share, or about $2B. Wachovia Securities will continue to operate out of St. Louis. Wachovia spends around $10M to title sponsor one of the more successful events on the PGA Tour and recently extended its sponsorship through the 2014 event in Charlotte. PGA Tour Senior VP/Business Development Jon Podany said it was too early to decide if the event would need a new sponsor, or whether the deal would transfer to Citi. Podany: “I don’t think they know yet whether [the sponsorship is] part of the assets that will go to Citi or whether it will go to Wachovia Securities. We’ll wait until after they sort through this and then we’ll sit down and talk with them.” Wachovia officials could not be reached for comment. Wachovia owns naming rights for two arenas and two minor league ballparks in Pennsylvania. It also has sponsorships with various college and major league teams, as well as the L.A. Live entertainment complex. Citigroup’s sports portfolio includes naming rights for the new Mets ballpark, golfer endorsements and sponsorship of the 2010 Ryder Cup (Jon Show, SportsBusiness Journal).
GOLF TAKING A HIT: SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL’s Show and Ourand cites sources as saying that AIG “has talked about pulling back on its advertising commitments for tournaments in 2009” after the federal government announced plans to take control of 80% of the company. While golf is not the only sport affected by the financial crisis -- Fox cited the financial sector “as the biggest sector absent from postseason baseball” advertising -- it is “unusually dependent on revenue from the financial category, with about 25[%] of network ad time coming from that area.” One network exec said, “The next few months will be a challenge. The overall market for this category will be challenging in the short-term” (SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL, 9/29 issue).
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