What is Visit Tampa Bay’s newest goal? Attracting English soccer fans.
The tourism promotion agency for Hillsborough County is hoping to score with English Premier League soccer.
Visit Tampa Bay has announced a promotional agreement with Brentford FC, which played three games in the U.S. in July as part of the league’s first-ever summer series.
“We’ve been impressed with the club and particularly with the loyalty and love felt for Brentford FC from their fans across the world and look forward to a long, fruitful partnership as we bring our story to the Premier League and Brentford FC brings their story to Tampa Bay and U.S. football fans,” Santiago Corrada Jr., president and CEO of Visit Tampa Bay, said in a released statement.
The agreement includes a monthly quiz in which two fans will have the opportunity to win a pair of tickets for an upcoming game at the Gtech Community Stadium. At the end of the season, a Brentford fan and their family will win a trip to Tampa Bay.
The team also will have a Tampa takeover game that will include advertising on the boards around the pitch, social and digital elements and hospitality upgrades for fans. On the Tampa Bay side, there will be a Brentford FC watch party, promotions and social media campaigns to help build the team’s growth and recognition in the U.S.
The agreement, the financial terms of which were not disclosed, will not include “Visit Tampa Bay” appearing on the team’s jersey.
Front-of-shirt sponsorships range from $7 million to $20 million in the English Premier League, Mary Haban, Visit Tampa Bay’s vice president of global communications, said via email.
“Our deal is a fraction of a fraction of that,” she said.
Branding Florida tourism with British soccer is not a new concept. In 2015, Fulham FC, in England’s second-division soccer league, wore jerseys sponsored by Visit Florida, the state’s tourism agency. Visit Tampa Bay previously had a six-year partnership with Norwich City FC, but that club was relegated out of the premier league after the 2022 season. Visit Tampa Bay also has worked occasionally with Wolfsburg in the German Bundesliga, Haban said.
