By Andrew Warshaw
June 16 – The world’s oldest knockout football competition will be known for the next three years as “The FA Cup with Budweiser” after the United States beer group was confirmed as the new sponsors of the tournament today.
The company, owned by St Louis-based Anheuser-Busch InBev, has been the official beer of the World Cup for the last 25 years and will be expected to use its promotional skills to rekindle interest in the FA Cup, which has lost its lustre recent years, with low attendances and second-string teams in the early rounds.
Once considered sacrosanct in terms of being free of any commercial partner, the competition has had to move with the times and Football Association general secretary Alex Horne believes the partnership with Budweiser can help take the FA Cup to a new global audience.
“We are extremely pleased to have secured an iconic brand such as Budweiser to be the lead partner of the FA Cup,” he said.
“Like the FA Cup, Budweiser has a proud heritage and a long history of being involved in football.
“Furthermore, given the global reach of this sponsorship we will see the FA Cup promoted around the world like never before, which is great for the fans and the players.
“The FA Cup is already a much-loved competition around the world and we look forward to building on that passion with Budweiser.
“It is very important to take the FA Cup to the next level.
“It is a massively cherished competition.”
Budweiser, who will replace E.ON, have already begun a public relations initiative, with fans voting for man of the match, a role usually reserved for commentators.
A portion of sponsorship funds will be used to develop “a bespoke programme promoting responsible drinking to football fans”, while the company will also contribute to donating equipment to teams in the early rounds of the competition.
One of the first areas that will have to be addressed under the new deal is the final itself.
Last season’s FA Cup final, won by Manchester City, was played on the same day as a full Premier League programme, undermining what used to be a unique solo occasion both for football lovers and casual observers alike.
FA chairman David Bernstein is hopeful of avoiding that situation next May.
“We want to get the competition back to having a day to itself and we are in talks with the Premier League to make sure that happens,” he said.
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