DHL has signed a three-year partnership agreement with Manchester United Football Club, becomingits official logistics supplier and a key sponsor. The deal also involves DHL playing a leading
role in the work of the Manchester United Foundation, developing a series of programmes to improvethe lives of vulnerable young people.Phil Couchman, CEO of DHL Express (UK & Ireland), told CEP-Research that the logisticsservices DHL would provide to Manchester United would involve all of the divisions of the company,from express to supply chain services, global forwarding and global mail, although he was unable togive specific details due to customer confidentiality issues. DHL announced that the contract“provides the opportunity for a wide range of integrated B2B and consumer marketing activities andevents across many platforms including digital advertising perimeter boards, matchday programme,club website and selected events at Old Trafford”.
Manchester United’s commercial director, Richard Arnold, told CEP-Research: “For a business likeours with a fan base around the world, a lot of things are being sent from one corner of the worldto another, from the millions of shirts that you see people wearing in all corners of the world, tothe millions of credit cards, and hundreds of thousands of programmes, running into millions, andcopies of the magazines, and a whole range of other things. So, there are a lot of things beingmoved, and all of the contracts for these have been moved over to DHL, or are moving over as soonas possible.”
David Wilson, senior vice president of sales for DHL Express Europe, declared: “ManchesterUnited is an organisation that we are truly excited about partnering with, and the agreement buildsupon some of DHL’s other global partnerships, for example with Formula One and the Rugby World Cup.Football is a global game, and Manchester United is one of the biggest and most successful clubs inthe world, and DHL is also a truly global company, with 400,000 employees in 220 countries. Bothcompanies are recognised globally for their success and there are a lot of other similarities thatmake this a perfect partnership.”
David Gill, CEO of Manchester United, said: “DHL is one of the most recognised names in thebusiness, and has a reputation for reliability and consistency, and the desire to innovate and leadthe field – all values that Manchester United also aspires to. We pride ourselves on buildinggenuine partnerships with our sponsors, and we hope to show that over the next three years, andhopefully many more years to come.”
He said DHL’s commitment to corporate social responsibility was also an important factor in thepartnership. “Our own Manchester United Foundation is becoming increasingly important to us, and itwill be very rewarding, not only commercially, but also on that side, to develop projects andopportunities together over the next few years.”
Couchman added: “By partnering with Manchester United we have teamed up with a brand whoseinternational footprint mirrors our own. A major part of our business is to help businesses grow byoffering them an efficient and effective international offer. The way that Manchester United hasgrown from humble beginnings formed by a group of railway workers into a worldwide brand with 333million followers shows how small businesses can emerge into world leaders.”
He said that although the two operated very different businesses, in many ways there weresimilarities. “As a global logistics company, DHL is perfectly placed to support Manchester United’s international reach. The deal also guarantees DHL enormous brand visibility, with ManchesterUnited matches broadcast to around 1.1 billion households worldwide. As a worldwide brand it isimportant that our partnership deals have worldwide visibility. But along with that, we will beproviding a range of marketing and logistics services for at least the next three years. Throughoutthis time, we will be able to reach customers in a new and vibrant manner that will help maximisethe visibility of the brand while serving the various markets effectively.”
Couchman said both parties had grown from humble beginnings into leading global brands, but werestill looking to expand further. “This partnership illustrates both Manchester United’s and DHL’sambitions,” he added. “We are also looking forward to working with the Manchester UnitedFoundation, to educate, motivate and inspire young people. The vision of the foundation mirrors ourown corporate social responsibility goals, and so we see opportunities there for our staff to getinvolved and support that in lots of ways.”
