and its bottom line. But the affiliation also holds notable potential as a long-term partnership between two organizations with proud histories of success, authenticity and canny corporate branding in their respective fields.
The five-year deal makes United the ninth Major League Soccer team to sport a jersey-front sponsor, but it may be the most unique arrangement so far in light of the breadth and depth of VW's commitment to their new "local club" and the league as a whole. The German automaker is keen to participate in many different aspects of the game day experience and is turning the heretofore vacant zone in the north end of RFK Stadium -- which was cleared of seats when baseball returned in 2005 -- into the "Volkswagen Garage," an interactive entertainment area where VW models will be featured along with video games, custom T-shirts and lounge spots.
Proud of its own winning history and brand recognition, D.C. took extra time to identify a company with an understanding of the sport and a desire to get involved on many levels.
"From the day that the league made the decision to permit jersey advertising as you see in the rest of the world, we tried to approach this as a very strategic undertaking," said United president and CEO Kevin Payne on Tuesday. "We're not interested in just chasing the quickest or even the largest money possible. We wanted a partner that would understand what our brand was about, and whose brand would represent many of the same kinds of qualities."
Volkswagen moved its U.S. headquarters to the Washington suburb of Herndon, Va. last month and the world's No. 4 automaker in terms of sales seems eager to get behind the Black-and-Red in the same way that it supports and sustains VfL Wolfsburg, the Bundesliga club that hails from its main base in northern central Germany.
"We are very proud to be part of the greater Washington, D.C. community," said Stefan Jacoby, president and CEO of Volkswagen's U.S. division. "We always said when we moved to D.C. and when we moved closer to our customers, to be a real marketing organization, we want to be also showing our local commitment by partnering with a great organization in this area and we are happy that you waited so long for us."
Payne revealed that he will travel to Wolfsburg later this month, along with United's prinicipal owner Victor MacFarlane and general manager Dave Kasper, to learn more about the club's structure and business practices. The connection could eventually grow to include technical development and possible player exchanges as well, akin to D.C.'s current partnership with Brazilian side Atletico Mineiro.
"It's a little early to guess at that, but certainly our hope is that the relationship with Wolfsburg will have its roots throughout -- commercially, technical, public relations between the organizations," said Payne. "Maybe we do exchanges of employees. So we'd like to find a lot of different ways to work together."
MLS Commissioner Don Garber was also on hand at RFK Stadium at Tuesday's press conference to announce the new partnership, and he pointed out that VW is also signing on as leaguewide sponsor from the grassroots level up, one whose inclusion adds a truly global corporation to the league's list of corporate backers.
"Companies are embracing the sport of soccer. They're embracing our teams," said Garber. "And by their associating with our teams and now our league, it's raising the perception of our league and really, the value of our league. This is a deal that's not just about the jersey sponsorship of D.C. United, it's also about a national sponsorship for Major League Soccer."
Aware of their impending move to northern Virginia, United originally approached VW towards the end of last year and matters moved quickly once proper negotiations began in February.
Much around the club has undergone a rapid transformation over the past few days, from the logo branding of United's jerseys and apparel to the remodeling of RFK's VIP lounge into the "Volkswagen Lounge" -- and the frenetic construction going on behind RFK's north goal in preparation for Thursday night's MLS Primetime match against Chicago. More perks: all D.C. United employees will have access to the same sort of discounted vehicle purchase program enjoyed by VW staff, and fans can take advantage of free parking at Thursday's game courtesy of VW.
"We're very pleased about the fact that the company recognized how important it was to have everybody in the D.C. United family benefit by this relationship," said Payne. "Volkswagen has a real deep commitment to this. It's very exciting."
Charles Boehm is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
