Man Utd inks £180m training ground deal with Aon
Manchester United has penned a multi-million pound deal with Aon to become the first sponsor of its training ground as it steps up efforts to boost off-field revenues.
The eight year deal will see the football club’s Carrington training ground renamed the ‘AON Training Complex’ from July. It will also see the insurance firm’s logo worn by players and coaching staff during training sessions and during pre-match warm-up sessions.
The tie-up, thought to be worth as much as £180m, will also see the insurance firm provide the Premier League outfit with risk management advice as well as data and research.
Richard Arnold, commercial director at Manchester United, says: “The Aon Training Complex is all about winning and preparing individuals, identifying talent and performing at the highest level to achieve success. Aon serves clients with unwavering focus on high performance, training and execution, an approach that mirrors the way we prepare here at Manchester United.”
Aon’s four year shirt sponsorship deal ends this summer. It will be replaced by Chevrolet, which announced a seven-year deal last year.
Phil Clement, global head of marketing and communications says the venture is the “next step in the evolution” of its partnership with the football club.
He adds: “The first phase of our relationship brought Aon an explosion in brand awareness. This phase of our partnership is a more holistic approach where we can use our expertise and create a global dialogue and knowledge share around the fields of talent, healthcare, risk, retirement, and data and analytics to help deliver great performance and great results.”
United became the first team to sell the sponsorship rights to its training kit in 2010 in a four year deal with DHL. Last October, however the club bought back the rights with a view to securing a more lucrative deal elsewhere.
Commercial revenues for the club rose 29 per cent to £35.6m during its second quarter including a 49 per cent rise in sponsorship income after the club signed six new deals.
The venture is likely to trigger suggestions United could try to sell the naming rights to its Old Trafford stadium, but incoming chief executive Ed Woodward assured it “will not be sold”.
The announcement comes ahead of the club’s Premier League clash with local rivals Manchester City this evening. A win will all but guarantee its 20th championship title.
