By Mark Baber
July 23 – Premier League club Stoke City have signed a new two-year partnership with parcel delivery company DPD which includes sponsorship of the east stand at the Britannia Stadium which will now be known as the DPD Stand.
DPD have long-term links with the club, but the new deal doubles their annual investment at a time when the company, ultimately owned by France’s privatised ‘La Poste’, plans to significantly increase its presence in the Stoke area with an additional £100 million parcel sortation hub that will create up to 1,000 new, permanent full-time jobs expected to be fully operational later this year.
The new hub will be the largest of its kind in Europe, and will significantly increase DPD’s overall parcel capacity. In total, the site will cover an area the size of 19 football pitches (33 acres) while the hub building itself will be around 470m long.
DPD chief executive – and Stoke supporter – Dwain McDonald said of the new deal: “We’re very proud indeed to be Stoke City’s official logistics partner and to extend our relationship with the club.
“Stoke is an increasingly important location for DPD with the head office of our new parcel shop network, DPD Pickup, based there, and the new ‘super depot’ being built at Etruria, which will be one of the largest in our network.
“This new sponsorship deal symbolises our wider commitment to the city, and we’re very much looking forward to the new season together and supporting Stoke City in the Premier League.”
Stoke chief executive Tony Scholes said: “We’re delighted that DPD have chosen to extend and significantly develop their association with the Club.
“We have worked closely with them over the last couple of years and I know from talking to Dwain he feels that our partnership and the exposure this gives them has enabled DPD to deliver their aims and objectives.
“DPD recognise that the Premier League is an open door to a global audience and we look forward to continuing to work with such a thriving business as one of our Platinum Partners.”
The East Stand was previously known as the Novus stand, and the club confirmed to Inside World Football that this is the area of the stadium which is being renamed.
In the Netherlands DPD is the shirt sponsor of Willem II football club and in France, La Poste sponsors the French national team as well as the referees in many sports. DPD has also sponsored community club Hinckley AFC as well as working with Aston Villa to promote its Sunday delivery service.
Contact the writer of this story at moc.l1734934888labto1734934888ofdlr1734934888owedi1734934888sni@r1734934888ebab.1734934888kram1734934888