Auckland Stadiums secures naming rights sponsor for Mt Smart Stadium
delivered
Mt Smart Stadium has recently had new seats installed and is now called Go Media Stadium Mt Smart.
Mt Smart Stadium will be known as Go Media Stadium Mt Smart from Monday.
Auckland Stadiums, part of the urban conglomerate Tātaki Auckland Unlimited, has signed a 12-month commercial naming rights deal with the outdoor advertising company, with the goal of turning it into a multi-year agreement.
The home stadium of teams Warriors and Moana Pasifika has not had a naming rights sponsor since its deal with Ericsson ended in 2006 and James Parkinson, director of Tātaki Auckland Unlimited Stadium, said they were interested in bringing another sponsor on board.
“From a venue perspective, finding a naming rights partner is something we are focused on and have deliberately addressed in the process,” Parkinson said.
“We were looking for a partner who could add real value, and when we first approached Go Media it was for their support in finding a partner.”
Under the terms of the agreement, Go Media hopes to use its connections to help bring more sporting events to the stadium, including additional NRL games.
delivered
Auckland Stadiums’ James Parkinson, Go Media Managing Director Mike Gray and Go Media Director Andrea Rongonui announce a naming rights sponsorship deal with Mt Smart Stadium.
“We have a relationship with Auckland Stadiums,” said Mike Gray, Managing Director of Go Media.
“As a company we sponsor many sports and have a relationship with the tenants of the stadium, says Moana Pasifika, we sponsor the Warriors Community Trust and New Zealand Football who recently played against China there.
“So they asked us to help them find a naming rights sponsor as we work with the media agencies that all the big brands have.
“As I was trying to understand what was available, it occurred to me that this would interest me because it’s a natural progression for us.
“As a brand, it’s quite difficult to find a naming rights partner that doesn’t create conflicts. There could be conflicts with New Zealand Rugby, World Rugby or Warriors sponsors.
“But we are very neutral and that was one of the big advantages.”
Auckland Stadiums operates three venues in the area: Mt Smart Stadium, North Harbor Stadium and Western Springs. Not only do these facilities allow people in the region and country to watch top sporting and entertainment events, they also provide revenue to Auckland Council and a naming sponsor contributes to that revenue.
“It’s fair to say that Covid has been a bit disruptive to these endeavors,” Parkinson said.
“Now that we are getting back into events activity, we have refocused on our desire to find a naming rights partner. For us, it’s part of a broader strategy to diversify our revenue streams.
“The events sector carries a degree of risk and revenue streams fluctuate just relying on ensuring event activity from one year to the next.
“So we had a conscious strategy to diversify and secure a number of revenue streams, and a naming rights partner was a logical part of that.
“To get the full benefit of it, we literally wanted to work with someone. So together we want to expand the portfolio at the stadium for mutual benefit and for that Go Media is a natural partner because they are committed to the sports sector in New Zealand.”