Subway to sponsor NFL London Games

uick-service restaurant Subway has secured the contract to be the lead sponsor for the NFL London Games.

The American football league will stage four games in London this year for the first time. As part of the deal, Subway will hold the position of presenting partner for the NFL in the UK and Ireland over the next three years.

The initiative is part of the two parties’ joint commitment to getting the nation active. Subway will enable the NFL to bring the sport directly into schools across the UK and Ireland.

To launch the partnership, both Subway and the NFL hosted a ‘Summer Bowl’ at King’s House Sports Ground in Chiswick, West London. The event saw over 500 children taking part in a flag football tournament, coached by eight players from the NFL.

American football is one of the fastest-growing sports in the UK and Ireland. Over 23 million people in the region tuned in to NFL broadcasts during the 2016/17 season and 40,000 people now play the sport in England alone, according to figures from Sport England.

Sacha Clark, marketing director for Subway UK and Ireland, says: “We put guests at the heart of everything we do and are constantly looking for new ways to both enhance their in-store experience and grow what they love about the brand. This partnership does exactly that.

“The monumental growth of the sport in the UK, plus a close alignment of our corporate social responsibility values around getting families active, made the NFL a very natural partner and we are all incredibly excited about the relationship ahead of us!”

Alistair Kirkwood, managing director of NFL UK, adds: “We are very excited about our new partnership with the Subway brand and the potential for us to work with them in continuing to develop our sport. Our respective brand values are very closely aligned and make us a perfect fit for each other.”