AUBURN, ALA.
Tigers erect ‘Conquer’ campaign
Auburn University’s latest football-themed billboard campaign is called “Ever To Conquer,” named after a line in the school’s fight song. Fifteen billboards feature the phrase along with a picture of Auburn’s tiger mascot ripping open a shirt. The action is reminiscent of the touchdown celebration of quarterback Cam Newton, who helped lead Auburn to a 2010 national championship.
BALTIMORE
Mandarin orange for O’s fans
The Baltimore Orioles were planning to hold a Wei-Yin Chen T-shirt promotion last week. The first 10,000 fans 15 and older attending Thursday’s game against Kansas City were due to receive a shirt featuring Orioles on the front and Chen’s name on the back, both written in Mandarin Chinese. Chen, who is from Taiwan, is in his first season with the Orioles.
BOSTON
Garnett’s AS Roma deal nixed
Boston Celtics star Kevin Garnett last year decided to invest with Serie A soccer club AS Roma, but the NBA blocked the move because AS Roma owner and CEO James Pallotta is a Celtics investor, according to a Boston Globe report. The report noted that LeBron James is allowed to invest in Liverpool FC because Fenway Sports Group, that club’s owner, has no connection to the NBA.
COLUMBUS
Jackets expand Lexus partnership
The Columbus Blue Jackets expanded their corporate partnership with Lexus, a team partner since 2008. A new component of the deal is the introduction of the Lexus Glass Seats, which provides for title sponsorship and branding rights to the entire first row of seats closest to the ice.
FOXBORO, MASS.
Brisket, wings, veggies on the menu
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Gillette Stadium has implemented facility upgrades every year since opening in 2002.
Photo by: GILLETTE STADIUM / CHRISTY BERKERY
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Gillette Stadium has revamped and rebranded each of its 38 permanent concessions stands. In addition to new items including house-smoked beef brisket and buffalo wings, an expanded menu of vegetarian selections will appear at new Market Fresh Deli locations. The menus will appear on digital displays and upgraded overhead signage throughout the stadium.
Cross makes it official with Kraft
Kraft Sports Group and Cross Insurance agreed to a sponsorship deal that makes Cross the official insurance broker of the New England Patriots, the MLS Revolution and Gillette Stadium. The deal provides Cross with a visible presence at Gillette Stadium and adjacent Patriot Place throughout the 2012 NFL and MLS seasons.
LOS ANGELES
Panini plans Kobe Anthology
Panini America is producing the Kobe Anthology, a yearlong trading card set honoring Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant. The 200-card set will span all upcoming 2012-13 Panini NBA basketball products. Each box will contain a five-card Kobe Anthology pack.
MINNEAPOLIS-ST. PAUL
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| Fans held court with Roy (right) through Google. |
Roy signs deal, goes digital with fans
The Minnesota Timberwolves broke new social media ground July 31, inviting eight season-ticket holders to participate in a Google+ Hangout with newly signed guard Brandon Roy. The technology allows up to 10 people at a time to chat digitally while an unlimited number of additional viewers can watch the chat. Roy took questions for 15 minutes.
NEW ORLEANS
Hornets switch to WWL-AM
The New Orleans Hornets signed a multiyear radio deal with Entercom Communications that calls for all Hornets games to be broadcast live on WWL-AM beginning this season. Hornets games aired for several years on KMEZ-FM before moving last season to WMTI-FM.
NEW YORK
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The Yankees and donor search group DKMS gave out hats to raise awareness.
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Yankees assist bone marrow effort
The New York Yankees at their Aug. 4 home game against Seattle signed up more than 2,000 people as new bone marrow donors in partnership with nonprofit donor search group DKMS. The team placed 20 stations in Yankee Stadium where potential donors had their DNA collected with a cheek swab.
PHILADELPHIA
Flyers, Titans renew affiliation
The Philadelphia Flyers renewed their minor league affiliation agreement with the Trenton Titans of the ECHL. The Titans served as the Flyers’ ECHL affiliate last season and previously from 1999 to 2007.
Phillies Phestival fights ALS
Nearly 7,000 people attended the recent Phillies Phestival at Citizens Bank Park, an event that raised more than $850,000 for the Greater Philadelphia chapter of the ALS Association. Since 1984, the MLB Phillies have raised more $13.5 million for the fight against the progressive neuromuscular disorder. The festival included games, auctions and autograph sessions.
SACRAMENTO
Kings ramping up philanthropy
The Sacramento Kings are accelerating their philanthropic efforts, taking on some initiatives of the defunct Hope Productions Foundation and hiring its former leader. A Kings executive said the campaign is not about repairing the team’s image after team owners walked away from a downtown arena deal. The foundation focused its efforts on youth initiatives.
SOUTH BEND, IND.
CLC extends with Irish
Collegiate Licensing Co. extended its agreement to be the licensing agent for the University of Notre Dame, keeping the Atlanta-based company in business with the Irish as part of a deal that started in 2003.
ST. CHARLES, MO.
CHL franchise becomes the Chill
Rights to the Laredo (Texas) Bucks franchise have been transferred to the market of St. Charles County. The newly renamed franchise, the Chill, will compete in the CHL beginning with the 2013-14 season. Its home venue will be The Family Arena.
COAST TO COAST — BEYOND THE COASTS
DUSSELDORF, GERMANY
Fortuna’s fortunes on upswing
Newly promoted Bundesliga club Fortuna Dusseldorf has set a club record for season-ticket sales, according to an SID report. The team sold 31,000 season tickets for the upcoming campaign, which starts Aug. 24. The club is returning to Germany’s top flight of teams after a 15-year hiatus.
MANCHESTER, ENGLAND
Man U fans call for boycott
Manchester United supporters against the public offering of the EPL club in New York have called for the boycott of sponsors’ products to put pressure on the club’s owners, the Glazer family, to ditch the plan, according to a Reuters report. The action comes on the heels of Man U’s high-profile shirt sponsorship deal with General Motors.
MILAN
Investor named in Inter Milan stake
Hong Kong businessman Kenneth Huang was revealed as the front man for a consortium of investors that is paying as much as $92.9 million for a 15 percent stake in Italian football club Inter Milan, according to a report in the South China Morning Post. Inter Milan boasts net revenue from the 2010-11 season of $261.4 million, according to the report.
NUREMBURG, GERMANY
Ice Tigers driving Mercedes-Benz
The Thomas Sabo Ice Tigers of the German Hockey League agreed to a two-year partnership with Mercedes-Benz.
PARIS
NBC expanding French Open coverage
NBC Sports and the French Tennis Federation reached a multiyear, multiplatform extension for the French Open that includes 10 more hours of live coverage for the Grand Slam event through 2024. NBC will air the opening Sunday of the tournament, as it did for the first time this year, as well as middle weekend tennis, the men’s and women’s semifinals, and the men’s and women’s finals.
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