New Stadium Scores With Liberty Properties

Press Statement by Councillor Chris Holley

From today Swansea’s new stadium will be known as The Liberty Stadium after property company, Liberty Properties Plc, signed a sponsorship deal to secure the naming rights for the £27million facility.

The deal, which is understood to be in excess of £500,000, means that the 20,200-seat home of the Swans and the Ospreys will be known as The Liberty Stadium for the next five years.

Liberty Properties is one of the UK’s leading commercial property development and investment company specialising in office, retail and leisure schemes. With offices in Swansea, Chester and London, Liberty operates throughout the UK and has a current development programme worth in excess of £150million, with an additional £150million of projects planned for the next 12 months. Renowned for its pioneering and innovative approach, Liberty has developed some of the UK’s most cutting-edge and prestigious commercial property developments. It is, therefore, seen as the ideal brand fit for the flagship stadium.

The board of the Stadium Management Company considered a shortlist of bids after an official tendering process which saw interest from a wide range of national and international companies. The agreement with Liberty was signed today at the stadium by Chairman of the Stadium Management Company, Cllr Gerald Clement, and Director of Liberty Properties, Philip Morris.

Chairman of Swansea Stadium Management Company, Gerald Clement, said: “We’re delighted to announce that Liberty Properties have signed a five-year deal to be associated with Wales’ top regional stadium. We have been working very hard to find the right top name sponsor and we are thrilled to have Liberty Properties as our partner.

“Liberty Properties is a market leader in its field and is, therefore, the ideal partner for the stadium and we look forward to working closely with them. Liberty is a strong, confident name in its own right and offers us all the right positive associations. I’m confident that The Liberty Stadium will soon become a watch word amongst sporting fans for the very best in sporting and entertainment facilities.”

Liberty Properties Development Manager, Scott Gibbs, said: “We’re tremendously proud and excited to be investing in the new stadium in Swansea. We saw the chance to sponsor such a flagship stadium as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the company. We’re a national company but our roots are firmly based in Swansea and so we’re thrilled to be able to support and celebrate such an important landmark for the area. From a business perspective, the partnership works to reinforce our progressive and innovative values, and the naming will also help raise awareness of the Liberty brand and provide us with the ideal launch platform for us as we prepare to diversify into more consumer-focused markets.”

Leader of City and County of Swansea, Councillor Chris Holley, said: “The Council is delighted that the right sponsor has been secured to give the Stadium a strong and distinctive new name. The Liberty Stadium will be a beacon for sporting success in South Wales and indeed throughout the UK.

“As Wales’ top regional sporting venue, Liberty Stadium will shine out as a landmark that will be the envy of many other towns and cities throughout Britain. It was never in doubt that the Stadium would get a top name sponsor and I am even more pleased that a Swansea-based national property company has come forward. I know that Liberty Stadium will become a name associated with all that is great about rugby, football and Swansea.”

The concept of a sponsor being given naming rights to a stadium is fairly new to the UK but has been common practice in the US for some time, with companies paying big amounts to have baseball and American football stadiums named after them.

Improbably, the first ground in the UK to be names after its sponsor was Scarborough’s stadium, which was named after the frozen chips company McCain’s, while Bolton Wanderers’ new ground was christened the Reebok Stadium when it opened its gates in 1997. Wigan’s JJB Stadium houses the city’s football club and rugby league team, and is named after the sports retail chain.

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