Ravens VP/Corporate Sales & Development Mark Burdett said that in the wake of the end of the NFL lockout, team officials are "working quickly to get corporate logos and slogans on radio and television commercials, online advertisements and video display boards inside M&T Bank Stadium," according to Scott Dance of the BALTIMORE BUSINESS JOURNAL. Existing sponsors' "support remains strong," but the team is "in a rush to fill the remaining 10 percent or so of its inventory for ads and sponsorships -- something that wasn't easy when the season was cast in doubt." Burdett said that the Ravens are "at about a third of what would normally be booked in new business." He added that the team's sponsorship sales staff was prepared for "devastating outcomes ... having set benchmarks for possible contingency plans should the labor dispute not be resolved by the traditional start of the season." Burdett noted that team officials were "pushing deals throughout the lockout, and some are just now landing signatures on the dotted line with the lockout resolved" (BALTIMORE BUSINESS JOURNAL, 7/29 issue).
TWO-MINUTE DRILL: Genesco Sports Enterprises co-Founder & CEO John Tatum said that sponsors that were "hesitant to sign off on deals during the 136-day lockout will likely rush to finish any agreements that were delayed, or not announced." Genesco "represents Pepsi Co., Verizon, Motorola, Campbell Soup and Miller Coors," and Tatum said, "Now it's about gearing up for the season and selling drinks, beer and snacks. The sponsors are happy and everything is getting resolved. It was a relatively injury-free situation, as far as the season is concerned." Tatum said that one of the "delayed deals could be naming rights to Cowboys Stadium." Farmers Insurance signed a 30-year, $700M deal for naming rights to the proposed L.A. downtown stadium, and Tatum said that the price tag for Cowboys Stadium "could be a bit larger given the scope of the stadium's crowd" (DALLAS BUSINESS JOURNAL, 7/29 issue).
