The Toronto Blue Jays signed a three-year national partnership deal with Honda Canada on Tuesday, a deal that should offer fans a small glimmer of longer-term hope of the team which could be facing a tough year on the diamond.
Every such agreement helps increase the spending power of general manager Alex Anthopoulos, and the fact that a company would want to buy in now suggests it feels better times–and therefore more exposure–is ahead.
While there is also an element of buying low at play, some in the corporate world are clearly willing to bet on Anthopoulos’ plan to build a winner.
“What we sell is our vision,” said team president Paul Beeston. “I guess you might put it that way [buying low], but we’re not in the position of discounting because that would be foolish, we haven’t changed the rate card or anything like that.
“But one of the things I think is critically important is that you have long-term relationships–continuity is the bedrock of a good organization. So if we have some good corporate sponsors presently, it will be our hope that when we get good, they’ll reap a tremendous benefit for being with us [now].”
Or put another way, provided all goes to plan and the Blue Jays grow into a contender: “The rate card goes up from here,” said Beeston.
Honda Canada, which sponsored the team from 1977 to 2001, is well aware of that, and views the current three-year deal as the first part of what will be a 20-year relationship as official vehicle of the Blue Jays.
“It made sense because we like the team, we much more like the management, and we like the direction the management is taking the team in,” said Arch Wilcox, Honda Canada’s vice-president of advertising. “It was the right time to get back in.”
The deal, giving the team more than a dozen sponsors of significance, was about a year in the making.
The most noticeable element of the agreement for fans will be a giant 5.5-metre high and 27.5-metre wide sign covering the out-of-use Windows restaurant in centre field. There are plans for jointly run clinics and team promotions at individual dealerships.
If the Blue Jays progress faster than expected, Honda Canada will end up with a steal.
“We didn’t buy this at a World Series rate,” said Wilcox. “We bought it based on what’s happening today, what’s their attendance today, what’s their TV audience today, all those kinds of things. So what’s that value worth? Let’s buy that.
“We know that if that if they can build a winner and their TV audience goes up 50%, and their home attendance goes up 25%, at some point and time when we go to renegotiate this it’s going to be worth more money.”
