Snapdragon, Manchester United’s new front-of-shirt sponsor, has expressed interest in the naming rights of Old Trafford.
In an interview with the New York Times, Don McGuire, Chief Marketing Officer of Qualcomm, which owns Snapdragon, has expressed interest in the naming rights of Old Trafford.
This development comes as the Premier League club is becoming more likely to build a new stadium, after announcing to fans its intentions to either re-build or redevelop Old Trafford earlier this year.
During United’s pre-season tour of the US, McGuire commented: “Old Trafford is Old Trafford, it should always be Old Trafford.
“But if there is a brand attached to that in some way shape or form, powered by someone, an ‘at’ or whatever. We are working very closely with the team on the reimagining of Old Trafford from a technology and innovation standpoint, and Carrington (the club’s training ground).
“So if that leads to something bigger, where it would make sense for us to go even bigger – this (shirt sponsor) is pretty big by the way, not inexpensive – but if it makes sense, we are always looking out for opportunities.”
Since Sir Jim Ratcliffe became a minority owner of Manchester United, supporters have witnessed improvements both on and off the pitch. However, one request of supporters is to improve Old Trafford.
These improvements, though requested by fans for years, became an urgent necessity towards the end of last season when torrential rain created a waterfall in the stands against Arsenal.
Ratcliffe hosted now Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham at the game, with the trio meeting up with other leaders to discuss the project of building a new stadium.
One major issue of the project is the cost, with a new stadium expected to cost in the region of £2bn. As well as government funding – one idea raised by Ratcliffe – the club could look to sell the naming rights to Snapdragon or another brand.
“Fan experiences, connectivity, stadium operations like retail, point of sale, ticket in and out. Then there is how fans can be engaged while in the stadium, whether through augmented reality or through their smartphones or devices. And then making United a more state-of-the-art club,” McGuire explained.
Undoubtedly, many supporters of the club will be against changing the name of Old Trafford. However, there has been a big stadium name change this week in the world of sports.
Twickenham, England’s home of rugby union, will now be named the Allianz Stadium as part of a multi-year deal between the Rugby Football Union (RFU) and Allianz. This move is particularly historic as the Twickenham name was removed from the stadium for the first time since it was built in 1906.
