ATLANTA (AP) – Aflac U.S. President Virgil Miller said his insurance company was a natural fit for a front-of-kit sponsorship deal with Atlanta’s new National Women’s Soccer League team. Which one will debut? In 2028.
It was announced Wednesday that Atlanta has reached an agreement to put the name of Georgia-based Aflac on the front of its players’ uniforms.
The Atlanta expansion team is owned by Arthur Blank, who also owns the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons and Major League Soccer’s Atlanta United. The Falcons and Atlanta United will play at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, which is also the home of the NWSL team.
Atlanta becomes the NWSL’s 17th team, following the addition of Boston and Denver in the league’s latest expansion.
“We believe in supporting women and women in sports, and when we looked at some statistics, we found that the National Women’s Soccer League has grown in viewership for the fourth year in a row,” Miller told The Associated Press. “That’s very appealing to us.”
Miller also said, “80% of health care decisions are made by women, so bringing these things together is a great way for us to show our support.”
As part of the sponsorship agreement, a portion of Aflac’s donations will be donated to the Aflac Cancer and Blood Disorders Center at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta.
“It connects all the dots for a great relationship, and we look forward to being a part of it,” Miller said.
The Atlanta NWSL team said the seven-year sponsorship deal is considered the league’s most lucrative front-of-kit deal. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Tim Zulawski, president of AMB Sports and Entertainment, said Atlanta United’s attendance success made the new NWSL team attractive for sponsorship deals.
“Atlanta United, when we started that franchise, people never imagined that we would regularly have 70,000 people coming to games and be in the top eight in the world,” Zulawski said.
“We fully expect NWSL Atlanta to be a leader in fandom, attendance and all the metrics we look at when evaluating a franchise. … Aflac has made an incredible investment and has shown how much they care about both this partnership and women’s sports, and we fully expect to see a 10x return on their investment.”
Mercedes-Benz Stadium will be renovated for the NWSL club. The maximum number of attendees will be approximately 28,000 people.
Blank’s investment in women’s professional soccer also includes the development of a practice field in the city.
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This article corrects the name of the Aflac Cancer and Blood Disorders Center at Children’s Medical Center Atlanta.
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