Taco Bell and FOX Sports have reached a four-year sponsorship agreement, making Taco Bell the “Official Quick Service Restaurant” of collegiate football’s prestigious Bowl Championship Series (BCS).
The agreement, which runs from 2007 through 2010, provides Taco Bell exclusive category rights to use the marks of the Fiesta Bowl, Orange Bowl, Allstate Sugar Bowl, and the new BCS National Championship Game. Taco Bell is a long-time partner of major sporting events on FOX, the broadcast television home of the BCS starting January 2007. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
“The BCS is college football’s premier event, watched by millions of football fans, dedicated alumni and passionate students,” said Debbie Myers, Vice President, Media Services, Taco Bell Corp. “Our partnership with Fox allows Taco Bell to deliver our ‘Think Outside the Bun’ brand personality to millions of Taco Bell consumers in innovative ways.”
In addition to advertising units in all BCS games televised by FOX, Taco Bell will receive an in-game enhancement during each broadcast, as well as collective use of BCS marks, including exclusive use of the BCS National Championship Game logo in its category. Under the agreement, Taco Bell has rights to create BCS promotions with FOX, and to use the championship trophy for promotional purposes.
“We’re thrilled to announce that our friends at Taco Bell have become the Official QSR of FOX’s BCS coverage,” said Neil Mulcahy, Executive Vice President, Sports Sales, Fox Broadcasting Company. “Taco Bell’s innovative marketing group has worked with FOX on a number of projects over the years, and its creative sense is exactly in line with what we try to do at the network. We’re proud to have Taco Bell on-board as a BCS partner for the next four years.”
FOX Sports kicks-off its BCS coverage next January with the Fiesta Bowl (Jan. 1, 2007), Allstate Sugar Bowl (Jan. 2, 2007), Orange Bowl (Jan. 3, 2007), and the BCS National Championship Game (Jan. 8, 2007) from Glendale, Arizona. Veteran FOX Sports play-by-play voice Thom Brennaman calls one of the three bowl games, as well as the new stand-alone BCS National Championship Game. Brennaman’s analyst partner(s), and the remainder of FOX Sports’ BCS broadcast team, will be announced at a later date.