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January 18, 2007
Nets naming-rights deal ties Mets record
Move over, Citiwhatever: The British bank Barclays has tied the New York Mets' record $20 million a year naming rights deal with a reported 20-year, $400 million contract to dub the new Brooklyn Nets arena the Barclays Center.
If you've never heard of Barclays except as maybe a vodka, that's because the British company doesn't actually have any banks in the U.S. - something that sent New York deputy mayor Dan Doctoroff into fits of glee: "To have an international investment bank without a major local presence to invest the way they are in the image of Brooklyn and the image of New York just is a remarkable vote of confidence. The idea of using Brooklyn and New York to build a global brand is one that we think is a very wise investment." Or a sign that somebody doesn't realize they could end up spending $400 million to promote somebody else's vodka.
Those who are still suing to stop the Atlantic Yards project that includes the arena, meanwhile, were decidedly unhappy about the as-yet-nonexistent building getting a corporate name, with Develop Don't Destroy activist Dan Goldstein telling AP that "Barclays is supporting an abuse of the Constitution." Though as others note, that's not exactly anything new for the company.
No banks, but they have pretty significant business in the U.S. - an asset management divsion, an investment bank, and a rapidly growing credit card division (used to be called Juniper Bank) that's headquartered in Delaware. Probably part of a push to raise the profile of their brand name in the U.S.
Posted by Sean Boulton on January 18, 2007 05:18 PM
I'm setting the Stock Quote bookmarks. As I'm sure many know, stocks for companies involved in naming rights have been known to fall when doing these deals (it's not that there is a relationship to it, necessarily, it's simply a matter of unrelated circumstance). Fascinating that an investment bank with no direct ties to the NY area would make such a longterm commitment.
Posted by Maury on January 18, 2007 06:43 PM