Ecommerce company Mercado Livre has acquired naming rights to São Paulo’s Estádio do Pacaembu in a deal that could reportedly be worth up to R$1bn (£160m/€188m/$203m), a record for a stadium sponsorship in Brazil.
The Maquina do Esporte website has reported that the value of the deal would only reach R$1bn if the company retains naming rights for 30 years.
Mercado Livre’s initial deal with stadium operator Allegra Pacaembu is scheduled to run for five years and includes the option of further five-year extensions. The deal would be worth around R$33m annually over the course of 30 years.
The façade of the stadium is set to retain its Estádio Municipal Paulo Machado de Carvalho branding, with the new ‘Mercado Livre Arena Pacaembu’ moniker to be displayed inside the venue.
The agreement also extends to the wider stadium complex, with Mercado Livre taking naming rights to the on-site 8,000-capacity events centre, aquatics venue, tennis court and gym.
The deal has been signed with the 40,000-capacity stadium in the midst of a major renovation project, which commenced in June 2021. The renovation project was announced after Allegra Pacaembu in January 2020 took over the management of the stadium complex through a 35-year contract.
The revamp is designed to enhance the multi-purpose status of the stadium, which occasionally hosts games for the State of São Paulo’s big four football clubs: São Paulo, Corinthians, Palmeiras and Santos. The redevelopment is scheduled for completion in the summer.
Eduardo Barella, chief executive of Allegra Pacaembu, said: “The agreement endorses the vision that we and our partners have. We want to demonstrate that we are much more than a football stadium, but a sports complex that operates 24 hours a day.”
São Paulo recently agreed a naming-rights deal for its main home stadium, the Estádio Cícero Pompeu de Toledo, with Mondelez International. The three-year deal was reportedly worth R$75m.
