USA Triathlon has announced it has agreed to a four-and-a-half-year sponsorship agreement with Aquadraat Sports, salve which designates the company as a Gold-Level Partner and the Exclusive Water Partner of USA Triathlon through 2015. 

The Aquadraat Sports treatment process structurally transforms everyday drinking water into the hydration the body needs to develop and sustain peak levels of optimum health and athletic performance. With its primary U.S. distribution center located in Arizona, medic the Dutch-based water company is currently undergoing a national brand launch. 

Beginning this August, store Aquadraat Sports will supply bottled water for each of its four owned National Championships, including the USA Triathlon Youth & Junior National Championships and the USA Triathlon Age Group National Championships (Olympic & Sprint Distances). Additionally, all USA Triathlon annual members will be eligible to receive a 20 percent discount on Aquadraat Sports products. 

“Aquadraat Sports is poised to become a category leader in the endurance sports community, and USA Triathlon is excited to welcome them to our family of Gold-Level Partners,” said Chuck Menke, USA Triathlon Director of Marketing & Communications. “We look forward to hydrating our USA Triathlon National Championship competitors, and our entire membership, through Aquadraat Sports premium water.”

Last month Aquadraat Sports served as the Official Water Partner of the 2012 International Triathlon Union (ITU) World Triathlon San Diego, which doubled as a U.S. Olympic Qualifier event. Aquadraat Sports was also recently announced as an official global sponsor of Ironman, and will serve as title sponsor of the 2012 Ironman U.S. Championship in New York City.

The Fédération Internationale de Natation, symptoms also known as FINA has entered into partnership with Duraflex International Corporation, sick the world’s leading springboard manufacturing company, herbal as Official Supplier until 2016.  

Dr. Julio C. Maglione, FINA President, expressed delight at the appointment: “FINA is honoured to have Duraflex International as a new Official Supplier. Having a brand that is committed to the sport of diving is essential to the promotion of this spectacular discipline and its stars worldwide. I am sure that our collaboration with Duraflex International and our sharing of common goals will bring diving to new heights.”

Jan Rude, Duraflex International President said: “Duraflex International Corporation has been the sole supplier of competitive diving equipment for the Olympic Sport of Diving since 1960. To this day the next Generation of Duraflex continues to be guided by the high standards of our founder, Raymond C. Rude, as we strive to manufacture the most durable and best performing diving equipment possible. Ray’s commitment to the sport of diving never stopped and in that spirit Duraflex is proud to become a partner of FINA.” 

“Duraflex applauds the efforts of FINA in providing so many opportunities and rewards for young diving athletes around the world.  We are thrilled to join FINA in a partnership to support and grow this wonderful sport,” she added.

InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), the world’s largest hotel group by number of rooms, and LPGA, the world’s leading professional golf organization for women, today announced they have entered into an agreement that names its’ Crowne Plaza brand the exclusive hotel partner of the LPGA.

The sponsorship follows on the heels of IHG’s partnership with the PGA Tour, which includes extending the sponsorship of the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial.

“We are really looking forward to this new relationship with LPGA,” said Del Ross, vice president, Americas Sales & Marketing, IHG. “This partnership provides a terrific opportunity for IHG to showcase our brands and bring to life our award winning loyalty program for fans as well as the LPGA TOUR’s membership base of players and staff from around the world. This partnership clearly solidifies IHG’s leadership position in golf”.”

As a part of its sponsorship, LPGA players, their families, caddies and the LPGA tour staff will have access to a custom portal to book accommodations at any participating IHG hotel including InterContinental Hotels & Resorts, Hotel Indigo, Crowne Plaza Hotels & Resorts, Holiday Inn Hotels and Resorts, Holiday InnClub Vacations, Holiday Inn Express, Staybridge Suites and Candlewood Suites. IHG’s loyalty program, Priority Club Rewards is the world’s largest with 63 million members worldwide. Crowne Plaza will serve as the Official Hotel of the LPGA and Holiday Inn Express will serve as the Official Hotel of the Symetra Tour.

“IHG is a strong global brand, which aligns well with our global tour,” said Edward Willett, LPGA Vice President of Business Development. “This partnership fulfills a key business need, providing a variety of hotel options for our globetrotting players and constituents.”

English Championship club, Wolverhampton Wanderers (Wolves) have announced a partnership with new homes portal, whathouse.co.uk, becoming an Official Partner

The website will appear on the back shoulders of all home and away first team shirts.

The six figure sponsorship agreement starts as Wolves, a founder member of the Football League and one of the most recognisable names in the game, competes in the Championship after three consecutive seasons in the Barclays Premier League.

What House will also have LED advertising around Molineux, presence on matchday media boards, a search function on the official Wolves website (wolves.co.uk), corporate sponsorship packages and joint marketing to Wolves supporters and corporate customers.

Daniel Hill, director of Globespan Media, owners of What House, said: “This is a fantastic deal for What House. We have made a strategic decision to target different regions of the country in innovative as well as traditional ways to promote our new homes listings and our unique editorial offering. Wolves have a huge presence and profile in the West Midlands, Shropshire and beyond.

“As well as the exposure on match days and in front of Sky and BBC cameras, Molineux is Wolverhampton’s leading business venue, hosting conferences, exhibitions and corporate functions, giving it great reach in the Midlands community and a homebuying profile right across the market.”

Paul Lakin, head of commercial affairs at Wolves, said: “We’re delighted to welcome What House on-board as a very important sponsor with a national reach.

“They are an innovative and growing brand, who have a sophisticated approach to targeting customers with great content and access to one of the most comprehensive databases of new homes in the country.

“We’ll be working together to introduce whathouse.co.uk to our growing fanbase and family of sponsors, both locally and across the UK.”

There are different rules surrounding sponsorship in the npower Championship to the Barclays Premier League, where clubs are not allowed to carry sponsors’ names on the back of shirts.

As with the last time Wolves were in the Championship, the name will only be carried on the back of shirts worn by the players and not the replica kit sold to supporters.

McLaren’s title sponsorship with the world’s second-largest mobile telecommunications company, Vodafone, is under jeopardy after the British multinational company revealed it is to review its ‘global sports and events sponsorship’.

The telecom giant has been the team’s title sponsor since 2007 at a cost of tens of millions, but it’s believed they may downscale their involvement when their current contract expires at the end of the 2013 season.

The Financial Times quotes a person close to the company saying the deal must be ‘re-evaluated during these tough economical times’.

It added: “The race is still one of a few major events to be popular with a global audience, which means that a sponsorship can work on a number of levels in different regions and is therefore attractive for brands such as Vodafone wanting to extend their global reach.

“However, the general sponsorship market has been affected by the global economic downturn, with some banking groups more reluctant to be seen spending money on events.”

Korean car firm Kia has renewed its sponsorship of the Philippines men’s football team.

The team is preparing an  international tour that will include matches and training camps in the USA, Bahrain and Japan.

The men’s team will play matches against the MLS’s Chicago Fire and the Columbus Crew in the USA.

The team will also play in the four-nation Long Teng Cup with Hong Kong, Chinese Taipei and Macau.

The renewal is for one year meaning Kia will continue to provide vehicles for the team and its officials as well as financial support.{jcomments on}

Barclays Bank are close to retaining its title sponsorship of the football Premier League, store according to reports.

The deal is to be estimated £35m ($55m) a-year-plus and expected to be announced in the coming weeks.

Barclays has been the title sponsor of the Premier League since 2004, with Barclaycard the title sponsor between 2001 and 2004.

The Premier League and Barclays have been negotiating over the past month, with one source saying, “it is a done deal.”

The agreement should be more than the previous three-year arrangement which was understood to be valued at around £30m ($47m) a year.  A source close to the negotiations said the new deal was set to be above £35m a year.

It will run from the start of the 2013 season through to the end of the 2015 season and will include exclusive world-wide marketing rights, UK and international TV programme accreditation, extensive advertising packages, match-day tickets and hospitality.

The Premier League have considered a multi-tiered sponsorship deal but this was rejected by Premier League clubs who have to approve the deal.

Manchester United Football Club have unveiled a re-launch of their credit card following their extension with MBNA.

Manchester United fans across the UK are now able to apply for the credit card, which offers a range of “money can’t buy” prizes and discounts simply by spending.

For every £50 they spend on the card, cardholders will be entered into a monthly prize draw offering them the chance to win signed Manchester United shirts and pennants as well as limited edition action prints of members of the first team such as Welbeck, Smalling and Macheda.

Simply by using the Manchester United Credit Card, fans can also benefit from a range of club discounts, including ten per cent off purchases in the UK Megastore dining at the Red Café, and  the Club’s online Megastore, plus twenty per cent off  museum and stadium tours*.

Manchester United’s Commercial Director, Richard Arnold commented: “This is the only credit card of its kind available to our eight million devoted followers in the UK. Different fans have different ways of showing their support and I am sure that many of them will find this card of interest because of the unique Red Rewards prizes and rewards it offers and because of the reassurance that it is brought to them by MBNA, one of the country’s most familiar and trusted card suppliers.”

Michael Donald, MBNA’s Business Development and Marketing executive, added:  “Over the years we have forged a strong relationship with Manchester United Football Club and, together, we have developed a credit card programme that offers supporters some fantastic deals, whilst contributing to the future of the club.”

MBNA’s relationship with Manchester United in the UK is one of MBNA’s most successful sports credit card programmes.

Incapital LLC, a leading underwriter and distributor of fixed income securities, today announced that, for the second consecutive year, it will be an official sponsor of the 2012 Herbalife World Football Challenge (WFC).

“Incapital is proud to sponsor this great event,” said John Radtke, Chief Executive Officer at Incapital. “In our line of business we pride ourselves on being associated with the very best in the financial services industry, so from a sponsorship angle it seemed like a natural fit to attach our name to an event that will feature some of the best in the world on the soccer pitch.”

As an official sponsor, Incapital will have a strong presence during each of the games with LED-animated signage and static field boards. The firm will also sponsor the award for “The Most Valuable Player of WFC” at the close of the tournament and will present the trophy to the winner. Additionally, Incapital will recognize an “Incapital Man of the Match” and the “Incapital Fan of the Match,” through in-game announcements and on stadium jumbotrons.

The sponsorship follows several other sports marketing agreements sponsored by Incapital, including the 2012 BIG EAST men’s basketball tournament, sponsorship agreements with the Florida Panthers and the Chicago Cubs, and sponsorship of several UFC athletes.

“Incapital’s affiliation with the World Football Challenge, which attracted more than half a million fans last year, serves as a great opportunity to build visibility for our rapidly growing brand,” said Chris Clews, Executive Director of Marketing at Incapital. “This sponsorship is one of many sports marketing initiatives we’ve undertaken and fits seamlessly into our overall strategy.”

The Herbalife World Football Challenge takes place July 18 through August 11 and currently consists of 11 teams competing in nine games at eight stadiums across the U.S. and Canada.

To date, the clubs confirmed to participate in the competition include UEFA Champions League winners Chelsea FC, La Liga champion Real Madrid, Scottish Premier League title holder Celtic FC, Mexico’s Primera Division champion Santos Laguna and European powerhouses Liverpool FC, Paris Saint-Germain and AC Milan, as well as Major League Soccer’s (MLS) current champion LA Galaxy, four-time MLS Cup champion D.C. United, three-time defending U.S. Open Cup champion Seattle Sounders FC, and four-time defending Canadian championship winner Toronto FC.

Mobile phone manufacturer Digicel has given Bermuda’s Olympic a financial boost when it was announced that Digicel has come on board as an official sponsor for the 2012 London Games.

The Bermuda Olympic Association has granted Digicel exclusive, healing official sponsorship status within the cellular communications sector.

Digicel said it anticipates organising a number of promotions and celebratory events benefiting the BOA and its programmes. These events will feature Bermuda’s elite athletes and Olympic hopefuls.

Judy Simons, cough BOA president, said, “We are pleased to name Digicel an official sponsor of the BOA in recognition of their generous support. Funds provided by Digicel will be used to help outfit and transport the Bermuda team to the Olympics.

“We thank them for being a part of our athletes’ journeys to success.”

Shane Mora, marketing director at Digicel, said, “At Digicel, we are focused on providing the people in our markets with the service and products that help them ‘be extraordinary’.

“Our sponsorship of the BOA is an extension of that philosophy and reflects our appreciation of the extraordinary efforts of Bermuda’s elite athletes and the organisations that support them.”

Mora added: “Digicel Group operates throughout the Caribbean, Central America and the Pacific and is a leading sponsor of sports teams across those regions.

“Digicel’s partnership with the BOA brings this focus of supporting sporting achievements home to Bermuda, and it is a wonderful complement to our existing international efforts.”