Fresh off successfully sponsoring soccer’s biggestinternational event, the FIFA World Cup, Anheuser-Busch plans to expand itscommitment to the sport in the United States.
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The deal covers the Mexican national team
and the rest of SUM’s portfolio. |
The beer company has completed a four-year agreement coveringSoccer United Marketing’s entire portfolio, including Major League Soccer, theU.S. national team, the Mexican national team, Chivas de Guadalajara, InterLiga(a Mexican club-team tournament) and SuperLiga, the new competition between MLSand Mexican club teams this summer.
The deal, which SUM President Doug Quinn valued in the loweight figures, is larger and longer than any deal in Anheuser-Busch’s 11-yearhistory with MLS. It also highlights a shifting strategy at SUM, as theorganization moves to sell sponsorships that cover its entire portfolio of sixsoccer properties.
“Budweiser made it clear they wanted it all,” Quinn said.“They wanted to own soccer in America.”
Unlike Budweiser’s previous partnerships with SUM, this dealincludes no MLS media rights because those rights are now owned by leaguebroadcast partners ESPN, Fox Soccer Channel, Univision and HDNet. Also absentis a spot on the back of the Los Angeles Galaxy’s jersey, placement the companyhad held for several years.
Instead, Budweiser gets intellectual property rights, playerrights, hospitality and some local marketing rights.
The company and SUM arediscussing whether to continue the “Hispanic Heritage Night” program they haverun in each team’s market during the last eight years. Still, SUM executivevice president Kathy Carter expects Anheuser-Busch will put more emphasis onsoccer at retail and at the local level.
A key factor motivatingBudweiser to expand its commitment is its belief in soccer’s ability to reachthe Hispanic demographic, said Bruce Hudson, director of international sportsmarketing at Anheuser-Busch.
“With the Latino population growing in this country, we thinkthis sport is an effective way to reach that audience,” Hudson said,“especially as MLS looks to partner with the Mexican first division and thinksof unique ways to reach that market.”
Budweiser faced more competition for the beer category than ithad in the past. Coors, which previously held the sponsorship rights to Chivas,was also in contention.
Budweiser is the first partner announced for SuperLiga, whichthe league hopes will become as significant in the Americas as the UEFAChampions League is in Europe. The league expects to add seven to nine moreSuperLiga sponsors in the next two years.
