March saw the renaming of one of the world’s most iconic sports venues as Barcelona agreed a sponsorship deal with Spotify for the Camp Nou.
The deal became effective ahead of the 2022-23 season and officially rebranded the stadium as Spotify Camp Nou. As well as naming rights to the stadium, Spotify benefits from brand exposure on the front of Barcelona’s shirts.
Reports in the Spanish media later suggested that the deal would be worth more than €400m (£351m/$425m) over 12 seasons.
Elsewhere on the sponsorship front, Allianz acquired naming rights to the new Sydney Football Stadium, while GEODIS agreed a deal with the home of Major League Soccer club Nashville SC.
March was also a busy month for Las Vegas, as Oak View Group announced plans for a huge $3bn retail and entertainment district in the city and Formula 1 struck an agreement to stage a night race on the iconic Strip.
OVG’s district will be anchored by a $1bn arena, which will have a capacity of 20,000. It is hoped that work can begin on the privately financed project in 2023, with a view to completion in 2026.
The first Las Vegas Grand Prix will take place in November 2023, with F1 and parent company Liberty Media set to work together to promote the event in partnership with Live Nation Entertainment and the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.
In other news, the Buffalo Bills NFL team reached an agreement with New York State and Erie County to build a new $1.4bn stadium in Orchard Park.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul secured a 30-year commitment for the Bills to remain in Buffalo. New York State will commit $600m towards the new stadium project, with Erie County to provide $250m.
Back in Europe, Spanish LaLiga club Valencia presented what was expected to be the definitive plan to restart the dormant Nuevo Mestalla stadium project, while English Premier League team Aston Villa unveiled plans to expand the capacity of Villa Park to over 50,000.
