TalkSport teams up with Scottish Courage in £1m sponsorship deal

Scottish Courage has signed a sponsorship deal, understood to be worth £1m, with Kelvin MacKenzie’s TalkSport radio station.

Scottish Courage has signed a sponsorship deal, understood to be worth &£1m, with Kelvin MacKenzie’s TalkSport radio station.

The terms of the deal are being kept a secret but it is known the John Smith’s brand will be the title sponsor of the station’s breakfast show.

The show, hosted by Alan Brazil and Mike Parry, will be called The No Nonsense Sports Breakfast and go on air for 53 weeks from July 2. The “No Nonsense” line is in keeping with John Smith’s advertising theme.

A poster campaign and an on-air promotion will back the sponsorship. Insiders say the show will have a number of tailored features including: “Silky Smooth Predictions” – a daily feature on the day’s top racing tips – and “Worldwide Nonsense News”, a review of the strangest sporting news from around the world.

The sponsorship is the highest-profile deal the station has ever completed. It is also the most significant since its format change last year.

The station was previously called Talk Radio, but last year rebranded to reflect its concentration on sport.

Last week, the Wireless Group – TalkSport’s parent company – sold Scot FM for &£25.5m to the Guardian Media group. The deal is expected to resolve Wireless Group’s debt problems.