FSV Mainz sign ten-year Infront deal Bundesliga club 1. FSV Mainz 05 have signed a ten-year marketing partnership with the Infront Sports & Media agency. The agreement, which begins immediately and will run until the end of the 2024/25 season, will see Infront take the exclusive marketing rights for the majority of the club’s premium commercial inventory. The deal includes the club’s main and shirt sponsorship packages, stadium naming rights, board advertising at the club’s home matches, as well as hospitality packages. Infront has marketed FSV Mainz rights in the past, but not on an exclusive basis. Infront executive Axel Pfeiffer will lead a team of seven Infront staff, including three former employees of the Bundesliga team, as well as FSV Mainz’ inhouse marketing team, on the commercialisation of the rights. Infront has guaranteed the club a certain level of Ànancial return each season. While the agency has not conÀrmed the Àgures, generous estimates in the Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper suggest the club will receive an upfront payment of €10 million, followed by an annual fee of €25 million. The club recently signed a threeyear deal with double-glazing company ProÀne, an agreement thought to be worth €12 million. “Our club’s internal marketing team, led by Dag Heydecker, has done excellent work and we could increase 66 | www.soccerex.com
Hublot clocks Uefa Champions League partnership Luxury watch brand Hublot has signed up as the ofÀcial licensed watch partner of the Uefa Champions League for the next three years. As part of the new partnership, which runs until 2018, the Swiss company has created a new fourth ofÀcial board for use in Europe’s elite club competition. Inspired by a Hublot watch, the board will be used by ofÀcials to indicate additional time at the end of the match as well as player substitutions. It will be used for the Àrst time this week. The partnership also includes the Uefa Europa League, for which Hublot has designed a separate fourth ofÀcial board.
“We are delighted to welcome Hublot as the ofÀcial licensed watch partner of the Uefa Champions League and Uefa Europa League,” said Guy-Laurent Epstein, the marketing director of Uefa Events SA. “The brand Àts perfectly with the prestigious and exciting nature of our top club competitions. We look forward to developing new bespoke timepieces together, as well as seeing the newly designed fourth ofÀcial boards in action.” Hublot previously created a special watch for the 2012 Uefa European Championship, while its football client list also includes Fifa, Premier League champions Chelsea and their manager, Jose Mourinho (left).
the marketing revenues of the club Àvefold of what it was eight years ago,” explained FSV Mainz president Harald Strutz. “However, due to the continued rapid development of the Bundesliga, it is our responsibility to fully exploit our economic resources and as such maintain our competitiveness. We are
delighted that with Infront we have gained a great and experienced partner – one who can optimally support our marketing with its sales strength and its national and international networks. Through Ànancial guarantees we are assured high economic planning security and thus a basis for further sportive development of Mainz 05.”