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Manchester United Signs Aon to Replace AIG as Sponsor
Manchester United will replace the three-letter logo of one American insurer, now emblazoned on players’ shirts, with the three-letter logo of another American insurer.
The club said Wednesday that it had signed Aon, an insurer, reinsurer and consulting company based in Chicago, as its principal sponsor, starting in the 2010-11 season. Aon will replace American International Group, or A.I.G., which chose not to renew its sponsorship after the company fell victim to the credit crunch and was bailed out by the U.S. government.
Neither Aon nor Manchester United would say how much the four-year deal was worth, but it is believed to be the most lucrative in soccer — about £20 million ($32.5 million) a year — a substantial increase from the £14 million that A.I.G. has been paying.
“They are the brand that everyone wants to associate with,” said Nigel Currie, director of Brand Rapport, a sponsorship agency in Guildford, England.
David Gill, chief executive of Manchester United, said the deal “clearly strengthens our position as one of the biggest clubs in world football.”
The deal was signed in Rome last week, just before Manchester United lost to Barcelona, a team without a commercial shirt sponsor in the final of the European Champion’s League. Barcelona gives away that space to the charity Unicef. United finished atop the English Premier League this year, for the 11th time in 17 seasons.
Greg Case, chief executive of Aon, said the company was attracted by Manchester United’s big fan base across Asia, where Aon hopes to grow in the coming years. Through sales of replica shirts to fans, he said, the deal would give Aon millions of “walking billboards.”
Manchester United reportedly had held talks with a number of other brands, including companies based in Asia or the Middle East. The fact that it settled on another American insurer to replace A.I.G. was coincidental, Case said.
“We’re delighted to keep it in the industry,” he said. “What you see is the globality of the insurance industry and the risk advice industry.”
The deal also reinforces Manchester United’s ties to American business, a proximity that has irked some local fans since the takeover of the club by Malcolm Glazer, a U.S. investor, in 2005.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/04/sp...er=rss&emc=rss
Manchester United will replace the three-letter logo of one American insurer, now emblazoned on players’ shirts, with the three-letter logo of another American insurer.
The club said Wednesday that it had signed Aon, an insurer, reinsurer and consulting company based in Chicago, as its principal sponsor, starting in the 2010-11 season. Aon will replace American International Group, or A.I.G., which chose not to renew its sponsorship after the company fell victim to the credit crunch and was bailed out by the U.S. government.
Neither Aon nor Manchester United would say how much the four-year deal was worth, but it is believed to be the most lucrative in soccer — about £20 million ($32.5 million) a year — a substantial increase from the £14 million that A.I.G. has been paying.
“They are the brand that everyone wants to associate with,” said Nigel Currie, director of Brand Rapport, a sponsorship agency in Guildford, England.
David Gill, chief executive of Manchester United, said the deal “clearly strengthens our position as one of the biggest clubs in world football.”
The deal was signed in Rome last week, just before Manchester United lost to Barcelona, a team without a commercial shirt sponsor in the final of the European Champion’s League. Barcelona gives away that space to the charity Unicef. United finished atop the English Premier League this year, for the 11th time in 17 seasons.
Greg Case, chief executive of Aon, said the company was attracted by Manchester United’s big fan base across Asia, where Aon hopes to grow in the coming years. Through sales of replica shirts to fans, he said, the deal would give Aon millions of “walking billboards.”
Manchester United reportedly had held talks with a number of other brands, including companies based in Asia or the Middle East. The fact that it settled on another American insurer to replace A.I.G. was coincidental, Case said.
“We’re delighted to keep it in the industry,” he said. “What you see is the globality of the insurance industry and the risk advice industry.”
The deal also reinforces Manchester United’s ties to American business, a proximity that has irked some local fans since the takeover of the club by Malcolm Glazer, a U.S. investor, in 2005.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/04/sp...er=rss&emc=rss
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