Welp…this might piss off some people in Wrigleyville.
In the past couple of years, the Chicago Cubs home has welcomed its fair share of advertisers, all to the chagrin of the Wrigley Field faithful. Which, to digress, cracks me up considering the stadium (which was initially called “Weeghman Park” and, later “Cubs Park”) re-named itself after a chewing gum manufacturer.
Years ago, it was Under Armour signage amid the ivy on the outfield walls that got the goat of Cubs fans. Then, you had that Toyota monstrosity in left field. Next, fans were excited/outraged about the giant Budweiser scoreboard in right field and, naturally, that birthed the even more giant Wintrust scoreboard in left.
Now, Toyota is back. Again!
Friday, the team announced the car company as its tenth “legacy” partner or, as it is referred to in the biz…“the placeholder until another advertiser comes along”. Soon, they’ll be taking its place on the front of the century-old ballpark…right below the iconic red and white marquee.
Also, the “Official Car of the Chicago Cubs” will have field-level signage, naming rights to the team’s parking lots, in-game rotation signs behind home plate and video messages on the left field scoreboard.
Hold on, I distinctly remember a time when team brass said that wasn’t going to happen.
“We respect Wrigley, and this is a different place than an arena or a newer ballpark where you might see more creative things,” Cubs senior marketing director Alison Miller said. “You’re never going to see a 30-second auto commercial. That’s us not doing our job if we just resort to showing commercials. We’re smart about finding unique content our fans want to watch.”
Nevermind…that was all the way back in April. Who would remember such a thing?
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