The Boston Red Sox, one of the top teams in North American baseball’s MLB, have become the second team in the league to land a new jersey patch sponsor after striking a 10-year sponsorship agreement with Massachusetts-based insurance giant MassMutual.
Under the wide-ranging deal, as well as having its logo feature on team jerseys starting from the 2023 season, MassMutual will become a signature sponsor of the team and have its logo placed above the centerfield scoreboard at the club’s Fenway Park.
Go deeper with GlobalData
The new scoreboard sign will replace the current John Hancock logo that has been present at the park for the past three decades after the company decided not to renew its partnership earlier this year.
The company will also gain a significant presence across all of Red Sox’s digital properties and throughout the rest of the ballpark, including behind the home plate.
Roger Crandall, MassMutual chairman, president, and chief executive, said: “The Red Sox and MassMutual each share a long and storied history in Massachusetts.
“For more than a century, we’ve been invited into many of the same homes, served many of the same families, and helped expand opportunities for many in the same cities and towns across New England and the nation.
How well do you really know your competitors?
Access the most comprehensive Company Profiles on the market, powered by GlobalData. Save hours of research. Gain competitive edge.
Thank you!
Your download email will arrive shortly
Not ready to buy yet? Download a free sample
We are confident about the unique quality of our Company Profiles. However, we want you to make the most beneficial decision for your business, so we offer a free sample that you can download by submitting the below form
By GlobalData“Now, we are thrilled to come together and partner with an organization that will not only help us dramatically expand our efforts to reach more people, but also shares the same enduring sense of interdependence, teamwork, and community.”
As part of the deal, the MassMutual Foundation and the Red Sox Foundation also plan to expand the Fenway Park Learning Lab public school support program starting in April 2023.
The deal expands on MassMutual’s relationship with the club after becoming a founding sponsor of the MGM Music Hall at Fenway Park which opened in August 2022. The company has a branded public lounge in the building.
Sam Kennedy, Red Sox president and chief executive, said: “The Red Sox jersey is one of the most visible and central representations of the club, and it was important to us for the partner featured on it to have a deep understanding and appreciation for this region and community.
“MassMutual is the perfect match for us because they have strong Massachusetts roots and an appetite similar to our own to collaborate well beyond the jersey patch.
“While their logo will feature prominently at Fenway Park with signage in centerfield and their logo on the sleeve of our jerseys, it’s the work we will do together in our community that will truly bring to light our shared values. We are proud to have them as partners and look forward to a long-lasting and successful collaboration.”
The MassMutual deal comes after the San Diego Padres’ struck the first MLB jersey patch sponsorship with telecoms company Motorola in April, a month after MLB finalized details of its new jersey patch program, a key part of its new five-year collective bargaining agreement with the MLB Players Association.
Under MLB rules, the patch will be 4 inches (10cm) by 4 inches (10cm) on either the right or left arm depending on how individual players bat and throw.
All jersey patch sponsorship deals will begin in the 2023 season, which is due to start on March 30 and run through October 1.
