Champs Sports Extends Bowl Title Sponsorship
Florida Citrus Sports CEO Steve Hogan has announced that Champs Sports, a division of Foot Locker, Inc., has extended its sponsorship of the Champs Sports Bowl continuing in Orlando through the 2013 college football season. The game is presently the only annual postseason matchup featuring teams from the Atlantic Coast and Big Ten conferences.
Champs Sports� extension in its investment will help Orlando continue to compete in its efforts to secure the highest possible picks with its conference partners. Last year, the bowl had the fourth selection in the ACC and Big Ten. Negotiations continue as it relates to what picks the bowl will have in future years.
�As the premier mall destination for the core sports enthusiast, it is a natural fit for Champs Sports to continue our partnership with FCS,� said Rob Brodersen, vice president of marketing at Champs Sports. �We are excited to strengthen our relationship and look forward to further success by building upon our athletic heritage with this high profile college bowl game.�
The Champs Sports Bowl has steadily grown to become one of the top bowls in the country since Champs Sports� involvement began in 2004. Attendance has grown for five consecutive years, hitting its high watermark this past year with a figure of 52,692. That figure also marked the highest attendance since the game came to Central Florida in 2001. Its television rating has also steadily improved and its 5.2 mark in 2008 stands as the second-highest rated ESPN bowl telecast of all time. Finally, its payout of $4.25 million ranks fifth among non-BCS games.
�Champs Sports is truly one of the finest, most committed sponsors in college football,� said Hogan. �We are extremely pleased to have them as a partner, and name sponsor of the Champs Sports Bowl for another four years.�
The Champs Sports Bowl and Orlando�s other bowl game � the Capital One Bowl — were among 34 bowls whose applications were licensed for 2009-10 at the recent Football Bowl Association meetings in California.
This year�s Champs Sports Bowl will take place on Tuesday, December 29th at 8:00 p.m. and will be televised by ESPN, home to the game for the next four years. Tickets range in price from $25 to $60 and are slated to go on sale September 1, 2009.