SALT LAKE CITY (January 11, 2021) – Real Salt Lake today announced the team has retained Playfly Sports to secure stadium naming rights, deliver a complete valuation of the team’s marketable assets and create custom-branded content to engage potential sponsors.
“Playfly Sports and their dedicated naming rights division is the ideal agency to work alongside our internal Corporate Partnerships department to identify and secure our next stadium naming rights partner,” said Real Salt Lake Interim President, John Kimball.
Boasting the youngest population in the U.S., Salt Lake City has been one of the fastest-growing cities for millennials and become a hub for sports, culture, and outdoor recreation. Real Salt Lake represents Utah’s only professional sports championship, having won the 2009 MLS Cup. Its youthful and soccer-crazed fan base spans more than 1 million fans in Salt Lake City and more than 2.4 million fans nationwide.
“We are proud of our team’s strong track record in bringing together the most recognizable brands with beloved collegiate and professional teams to create fan engagement and have a meaningful impact on the team’s bottom line,” said Craig Sloan, Chief Operating Officer, Playfly Sports. “Our valuation process will unlock a number of new marketing and sponsorship opportunities for Real Salt Lake and build strong connections to the team’s diverse, youthful and passionate fanbase.”
Playfly Sports’ dedicated naming rights division continues to create fully integrated partnerships between dynamic brands and high-profile sports properties. Their most recent success includes brokering major deals including an NBA jersey patch partnership between the New Orleans Pelicans and Ibotta, as well as securing Barstool Sports as the title sponsor of the Arizona Bowl. They are currently representing the Nashville Predators in their search for a jersey patch partner and the University of Virginia in their search for a basketball court naming rights partner at John Paul Jones Arena.
###
About Real Salt Lake
Real Salt Lake’s 17th Major League Soccer season recently concluded, the Utah side advancing to the 2021 Audi MLS Cup Western Conference Finals, the Club’s fifth Conference Finals appearance in its history and 11th playoff appearance in the last 14 years.
The club’s MLS Cup 2009 victory marked the state of Utah’s only major professional championship in nearly 40 years, the title preceding an historic run to the 2010/11 CONCACAF Champions League Final. Buoyed by a passionate base boasting several thousand season ticket holders, RSL has enjoyed a prominent home-field advantage – posting a dominant 145-43-46 (Win-Loss-Draw) record across all competitions at home (2.06 points per game for a 0.771 win pct.) – since building its permanent Rio Tinto Stadium home in Sandy 13 years ago.
In 2015, the club expanded its development pyramid with the addition of Real Monarchs SLC, one of several MLS-operated clubs playing in the USL Championship, the United States’ Division II setup. The Monarchs boast a pair of titles in its brief history, as the 2017 USL regular-season champions, later winning the USL Final in 2019. For the 2022 season and beyond, Real Monarchs will compete in the newly launched “MLS NEXT Pro” as part of a joint United States and Canada endeavor to complete the professional player pathway by connecting youth academies in MLS NEXT to first teams in Major League Soccer.
The entire RSL pyramid, which includes the RSL Academy’s U-15 and U-17 teams, calls the expansive Zions Bank Training Center in Herriman, Utah their daily training home. With five world-class grass fields, two indoor turf fields, a residential dormitory, the STEM-based RSL Academy High School and the 5,000-seat Zions Bank Stadium located on a 42-acre campus, Utah’s sporting future is bright.
Added in 2020 was the elite RSL Academy basketball program, already earning accolades internationally for its vision, mission, and accomplishments
The RSL Community Foundation was established in 2016, created with the goals of being active in the community year-round, utilizing the popularity and reach of RSL and the Monarchs in promoting health and wellness in children throughout the region, engaging supporters of soccer to raise funds and volunteer time for various local initiatives.
About Playfly Sports
Playfly Sports is a full-service sports marketing company operating where sports marketing, media & technology converge. Playfly Sports drives outcome-based solutions for brands reaching approximately 83% of all U.S. sports fans generating over 230bn impressions each year in pro, college, and high school sports. Utilizing the influence and durability of local sports fandom, Playfly Sports exclusive rights in the NBA, NHL, MLB, NCAA, esports, and high school sectors drive value for our local, regional, and national brand partners. Playfly’s insights-infused multimedia and tech platforms drive innovation through scaled linear, digital, in-venue, and experiential marketing and engagement assets. Playfly Sports has the unique ability to partner, innovate, and advance the aspirations of athletes, brands, academic institutions, and sports fans across the U.S. Playfly Sports is Igniting Brands through the Love of Fans. Visit Playfly Sports online at playfly.com and follow Playfly Sports on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook: @PlayflySports.
