The Chicago suburb of Elk Grove Village is getting its own bowl game, as the town will "be the title sponsor" of the Makers Wanted Bahamas Bowl, which will be played in the Bahamas on Dec. 21, according to a front-page piece by Christopher Placek of the Chicago DAILY HERALD. The bowl game will use the village's "business marketing tag line." Elk Grove is "spending $300,000 to sponsor the game," which was previously sponsored by Popeyes. This marks the "first time a non-tourist municipality has sponsored a bowl game." Elk Grove Mayor Craig Johnson said that he "wanted a way to expand the reach of the village's 'Makers Wanted' campaign," which launched in '15 to "promote the village industrial park." While "watching bowl games last winter," Johnson "came up with the idea of having the village sponsor a game." After eight months of "internal discussions and planning, Johnson announced the deal was done," ahead of a formal 6-0 vote by village trustees during a special meeting yesterday. Elk Grove has the "option to extend its sponsorship of the game another year for the same price." The agreement was "brokered for the village" by Chicago-based production company Banner Collective and marketing firm 4FRONT, and for ESPN by Denver-based entertainment agency Impression Sports & Entertainment (Chicago DAILY HERALD, 8/1). Johnson said, "Leading up to the game, ESPN will be referencing the 'Makers Wanted Bahamas Bowl' multiple times, allowing millions to hear our slogan. People will be curious and they'll Google 'Makers Wanted' and our town will pop right up" (FORBES.com, 7/31).
