ESPN, Budweiser say cheers for FA Cup weekend

Just as Andy Carroll headed Liverpool to the FA Cup Final, ESPN and Budweiser have celebrated the English semifinal weekend with an integrated tie-up covering advertising and content. The multi-faceted agreement, spanning content and advertising is being hailed as a demonstration of ESPN’s ability to deliver innovative solutions to brands and quality programming to fans of the English game, and cement its place as the alternative to BSkyB in the English football stakes. It encompasses three elements, namely a series of short films which recount fans’ own personal tales about the competition; a new programming strand in ESPN’s live FA Cup telecasts which discusses the match ahead with hosts, celebrities and ex-players; a special documentary exploring the history of the beautiful game’s oldest competition and enduring themes Commenting on the deal, Alan Fagan, Director, Advertising Sales, ESPN, Europe, Middle East & Africa said: “ESPN’s multi-platform FA Cup coverage has innovated throughout the past two seasons and brought fans closer to the game. Our collaboration with Budweiser reflects our shared passion for The FA Cup and fans, and ESPN’s ability to deliver unique solutions for advertisers.” Added Jason Warner, Budweiser’s Global Vice President: “One of our major commitments as lead partner of The FA Cup is to bring the tournament closer to fans around the world, building anticipation of matches in all rounds and celebrating the optimism the competition holds for football fans and clubs. The ESPN partnership is another step in sharing the magic of the world’s most famous domestic cup competition with fans around the globe and will develop and strengthen our FA Cup sponsorship.”