The "groundbreaking" sponsorship deal between Boston-
based Fleet Financial Corp. and MLB is "expected" to be
signed "within three weeks," according to Gregg Krupa of the
BOSTON GLOBE, who puts the deal at $8-12M "over several
years" (See THE DAILY, 3/22). The partnership as MLB's
Official Bank is "now even more attractive given" the
company's pending merger with BankBoston. IEG Sponsorship
Report Editor Lance Helgeson: "They will have more markets
after a merger, and they've got to come up with some kind of
activity that really promotes them. They will have a new
name, and it behooves them to put that new brand out there
in a striking new way" (BOSTON GLOBE, 3/24).
WILL TEAMS FEEL THE PINCH? Krupa adds that many
observers are saying that the "new bank is likely to be a
bigger player in both sports marketing and lending on the
national level," but Boston-area sports businesses "fear"
that the new company's "marketing platform and commercial-
lending business will be increasingly national in emphasis
... [and] may mean fewer dollars, locally." Celtics Exec VP
& CFO Richard Pond, in comments that "were echoed" by Red
Sox and Bruins execs: "It takes some of the competitiveness
out of the marketplace." John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance
President Dave D'Alessandro said that the Red Sox and
Patriots "might lose 'a few hundred thousand dollars' ... in
signage alone ... because one less bank will advertise with
them for several years." Despite the merger, the FleetCenter
name is "unlikely to change" (BOSTON GLOBE, 3/24).
