Japanese wasabi producer Daio has acquired naming rights to Stayen, the home of Belgian Pro League football club Sint-Truidense VV.
As part of the agreement, the 14,600-capacity stadium will be rebranded as the Daio Wasabi Stayen Stadium.
STVV is owned by DMM.com, an e-commerce company based in the Japanese capital of Tokyo. The club also has several Japanese players, including striker Shinji Okazaki and goalkeeper Daniel Schmidt, while Shinji Kagawa had a spell there last year.
The deal with Nagano-based Daio strengthens STVV’s connections with Japan, and club chief executive Takayuki Tateishi pointed to the club’s “attractive brand” when it comes to securing new sponsors.
“That not only improves our financial situation, it also strengthens the relationship between the Haspengouw region and Japan in the long term,” he said.
“Choosing Daio is in line with our DNA. Over the years we have built up a good relationship with many fruit and food companies. Just think of the iconic shirt of the 1990s, which featured the image of an apple. With this new partnership we continue this trend.”
The stadium is owned by Roland Duchâtelet, the former owner of STVV, who added: “Stadium partners are an international trend. And STVV is a professional football club. But football also has tradition.
“That’s why we won’t let the name ‘Stayen’ get lost. The stadium name will henceforth be Daio Wasabi Stayen Stadium. The people of Daio share the same values as us, hence we see each other as equals.”
STVV is eighth in the Pro League table after a 1-0 win against Kortrijk on Saturday.
