The League Cup "has long battled perceptions" that it is the FA Cup's "poor relation," according to Matthew Chapman of MARKETING MAGAZINE. It now "faces a fight on a wider front, as digital media continues to step up its claims on brands' marketing budgets." Capital One’s sponsorship of the cup "expires this season and the Football League has yet to sign up a new sponsor for its cup competition." Football League Commercial Dir Ben Wright said the biggest challenge in signing up a sponsor is down to "competition for the sponsorship dollar" being fiercer than ever.
He "dismisses the notion that brands could be holding back due to recent controversies." Instead, he believes rightsholders "are facing an uphill struggle when it comes to landing sponsorships because brands are becoming more rigorous in deciding how to split their marketing budgets." Wright argues that nowadays only footballing competitions such as the Champions League or the World Cup, and teams with a global draw akin to that of ManU, have the luxury of choosing between "multiple" offers. Wright: "Frankly, the competition that we, as rightsholders, have does not just come in from a rightsholder environment any more."
CHANGING PERCEPTIONS: It is understood Capital One’s sponsorship "was worth" £6M a year. An immediate £20M return on a £6M investment before any activation is "not to be scoffed at." The Football League "is not standing still in this brave new world dominated by digital marketing." As a result, it is rebranding as the English Football League next season, "while its cup competition will become known as the EFL Cup rather than the League Cup." The three-letter brand name "is designed to suit both the smaller screens of mobile devices and social-media’s hashtags, while the emphasis on ‘English’ is intended to give it a greater global appeal." The EFL branding "coincides with the Premier League rebranding to the EPL." The Premier League "is now opting for a tiered sponsorship approach." In contrast, the Football League "has already agreed another three-year deal with existing title sponsor Sky Bet, and, once it also has a title sponsor for the cup, will not sign up other sponsors on a tiered basis" (MARKETING MAGAZINE, 4/4).
