April 14 – US soccer is changing its Cola brand. PepsiCo, which has been a core sponsor of the MLS since 1996, is making way for Coca-Cola who take over as the official non-alcoholic beverage of the MLS and the United States Soccer Federation (USSF).
The four-year deal starts immediately with the April 15 exhibition game between Mexico and the US in San Antonio. The deal gives Coke rights to in-stadium signage as well as MLS and USSF trademarks as well as player appearances at hospitality events.
The deal, concluded by Soccer United Marketing, includes a renewal of Coca-Cola’s 12-year partnership with the Mexican National Team’s annual US Tour. In Mexico Coca-Cola has been a sponsor for more than 30 years.
“With this new partnership, we are committed to growing soccer here in the U.S. and using the power of our brands to engage and refresh fans at every level of the sport,” said Ivan Pollard, senior vice president of investment, connections and assets for Coca-Cola North America.
Coca-Cola’s move into US soccer comes at a time when the sport is experiencing impressive growth in the US with MLS crowds now averaging over 19,000 per game and the 20-team league preparing to add four more franchises – one expected to be in Atlanta in 2017 where Coca-Cola is headquartered.
Internationally Coca-Cola has long-used the power of football sponsorship having been a FIFA advertiser since 1950 and a World Cup sponsor since 1978. The company renewed its sponsorship of FIFA’s competitions through to 2022 in 2005.
The MLS is finding a rich vein of sponsorship form This is the fourth major new sponsorship in the past two months following on from the signing of Johnson & Johnson’s consumer division as its official health-care sponsor, Audi as its official automotive partner and Mondelez International Inc. as its official snack.
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