Crain News Service report
MELKSHAM, United Kingdom (Feb. 18, 2014) — Cooper Tire & Rubber Co.'s European unit has signed an agreement to become an official partner to the Barclays (English) Premier League Arsenal Football Club team.
The exclusive sponsorship designates the Cooper brand as the first “Official Tire of Arsenal Football Club” for Europe, Russia, the Middle East, South Africa and selected north African countries, Cooper said. The deal also involves the development of various advertising campaigns, consumer marketing programs and promotions.
Under the long-term deal, which will begin before the start of the 2014/15 season, Cooper Tire Europe will have pitch-side advertising during Barclays Premier League broadcasts at Emirates Stadium. The sponsorship also includes a number of activities with Arsenal players.
Arsenal, founded in 1886, is an English Premier League football club based in Holloway, London.
In addition to its new Arsenal sponsorship, Cooper Tire Europe said it is “very active in almost every kind of motorsport—from grassroots rallycross to international single-seaters just two rungs below F1.” The company recently announced a long-term partnership with ex-Formula One driver and BBC F1 pundit David Coulthard as the tire maker's high-performance ambassador.
This report appeared on the website of European Rubber Journal, a UK-based sister publication of Tire Business.