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Telecommunications Footy beats tennis in Optus sponsorship stakes
Telecommunications Footy beats tennis in Optus sponsorship stakes | Footy beats tennis in Optus sponsorship stakes |
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| by Stuart Corner | |
| Monday, 13 October 2008 | |
  
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It has declined to put a value on the sponsorship but says it represents its largest sponsorship commitment to date. Under the agreement, Optus will also become an official partner of the Game Development Program, providing football equipment for thousands of young soccer stars in regional and urban areas throughout the country. It is also not clear what naming rights will flow from the deal but Optus spokeswoman, Tracy Monkman, told iTWire that Optus would have naming rights to some series of games that would flow from the Games Development program. According to FFA CEO, Ben Buckley, "The Game Development Program is critical to building for the future. It is part of a long term plan to help make Australia a world leader in the game and to achieve sustained success at international level. Optus' support will help children around the country play the game." Optus has yet provided any details of any exclusive footy content it might offer its customers. Optus CEO, Paul O'Sullivan said the Optus mobile and broadband services would offer "a terrific platform for the FFA to create awareness and continue their rapid growth in Australia...As this sport continues to grow, in the coming months, Optus mobile customers will be in the box seat to access exciting new content on their Optus mobile phones." The new deal will replace the tennis as Optus biggest sponsorship commitment, although Optus says tennis sponsorship will continue. Optus claims to have been the major sponsor of tennis in Australia since 2001. When it announced an upgrade to its sponsorship in November 2004, it described the deal as "The most comprehensive sponsorship support for the sport ever seen in [Australia]." If the scale of exposure Optus gains through football comes close to what it has gained through the tennis, it wil indeed be very significant. According to its website, "The [tennis] sponsorship represents Optus' commitment to the development of tennis in Australia incorporating all levels of the sport, from the grassroots to the elite level, including junior development, wheelchair tennis, Australia's premier sporting event the Australian Open, and the Davis and Fed Cup teams." The deal gives Opus ownership of the Optus Team Tennis Australia (OTTA) and makes it: official partner of Australian Open; official telecommunications provider to the Australian Open and Tennis Australia. Optus has naming rights to the Optus Australian Davis Cup Team; the Optus Australian Junior Davis Cup Team; the Optus Australian Fed Cup Team; the Australian Junior Fed Cup Team and the Optus Australian Junior Travelling Teams from ages 12 to 18 as well as naming rights to the National Junior Touring Circuit; naming rights to the Optus High Performance Players; naming rights to the Wheelchair Open. |
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