San Diego-based small-business lender National Funding will title sponsor the '15 Holiday Bowl at Qualcomm Stadium. Financial terms were not disclosed, but the title sponsorship is only for the this year's USC-Wisconsin matchup. National Univ. had sponsored the bowl the last two seasons, while Bridgepoint Education served as title sponsor from '10-12 (THE DAILY). In San Diego, Kirk Kenney reports bowl officials were "prepared to play this year’s game" without a title sponsor. But National Funding CEO Dave Gilbert -- a USC alum -- "picked up the phone" after the school was invited to play. Gilbert said, "When I found out that USC was playing ... I jumped all over it." Kenney notes Holiday Bowl officials had "built up reserves in recent years in case they faced a year without a title sponsor to help offset costs for the game." National Funding’s emergence will "make it so they don’t have to dig so deep into those reserves." Gilbert said, "This is our first sponsorship, so I want to gauge what this does both in the community and also for our company and our customers and go from there" (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 12/17).
STILL SEARCHING: In Alabama, Brandon Marcello noted the Dec. 30 Birmingham Bowl, owned by ESPN, is still "seeking a title sponsor after two years of leaning on ESPN and the city for financial help." Birmingham Bowl Exec Dir Mark Meadows said, "The situation is that our sales team is out in the marketplace and they're talking to people. We're confident the game will eventually have a title sponsor but it's just one of those things -- trying to find the right match." Marcello noted BBVA Compass "ended its four-year deal as the primary sponsor" after the January '14 game, while Papa John's served as title sponsor from '06-10. The city of Birmingham is "set to pay $500,000 to host the bowl." The city typically "provides $300,000 in funding, but an additional $200,000 was requested because of the lack of a primary sponsor." Meadows said that the additional funding will "be used to increase the city of Birmingham's presence on ESPN with TV commercials to promote the city." Marcello wrote prospects of "landing a title sponsor in the next two weeks are not good." Meadows said, "I don't want to put any timetable on it, but you would certainly think so" (BIRMINGHAM NEWS, 12/16).
