Max-Morlock-Stadion, home of German 2. Bundesliga football club FC Nürnberg, will retain its current name until at least 2026 after its operator signed a sponsorship deal with business software company Datev.
Stadion Nürnberg Betriebs-GmbH has agreed a two-and-a-half-year deal with Datev, which is headquartered in the city of Nürnberg.
Datev will be granted use of the stadium for company events as part of the agreement. The partnership also includes various communication and advertising perks.
The stadium has been named after club legend Max Morlock since 2017. The stadium was previously sponsored by Consorsbank but rebranded as Max-Morlock-Stadion after the company joined forces with FC Nürnberg supporters, who helped fund a quarter of the naming-rights fee.
Christian Vogel, chairman of the supervisory board for Stadion Nürnberg Betriebs-GmbH, said: “I am aware of the importance of the stadium name for the people in the region. For this reason, I am very pleased that we now have a very renowned company, Datev, as a partner at our side.
“The cooperation with Datev and the associated retention of the stadium name for the next few years is a strong signal for the location, the region and, last but not least, for the Max-Morlock-Stadion event venue.”
Markus Algner, member of the management board at Datev, added: “We have been using the Nürnberg stadium for a long time to hold our various corporate events. We want to expand this further. At the same time, the collaboration has given us the opportunity to promote a topic that affects many people in the region.
“As a company with roots in Nürnberg, we want to help ensure that the current stadium name can be retained. We are very much looking forward to bringing this partnership to life together with Stadion Nürnberg Betriebs-GmbH and the city of Nürnberg.”
Last month, Nürnberg City Council recommended to approve an estimated €290m (£245m/$314m) project which will see the complete redevelopment of the stadium. The project is being led by the city and the football club and aims to create the most inclusive stadium in Germany.
In July last year, FC Nürnberg and the city presented a feasibility study for the redevelopment of Max-Morlock-Stadion, recommending the elimination of the current athletics track in a revamp that, at the time, was projected to cost up to €200m and retain its octagonal design and other historic elements.
Max-Morlock-Stadion opened in 1928 and has a capacity of 50,000. It was last renovated 30 years ago and missed out on becoming a host venue for the ongoing UEFA Euro 2024 tournament in Germany.
Featured image credit: Stadion Nürnberg
