Like Football, This Space for Sale

Checking out the NFL schedule for opening week, I came across an interesting matchup: the Bank One Bears against the 49ers.

Now when did Bank One, a banking company when last I checked, acquire a football team?

In June, the Chicago Bears agreed to a multi-year sponsorship deal with Bank One Corp. to become the Bears' presenting partner. While selling stadium rights is now the norm, the Bears were unable to sell the naming rights to the newly renovated Soldier Field because it is a National Historic Monument. Fortunately for them, they reached an agreement with Bank One, and now Soldier Field will be littered with signage that reads "Bears Football presented by Bank One."

Now that the team name can be "presented", the only bastion in sports that remains (somewhat) commercial free is the uniform. Sure, the logo of the apparel company is on the jersey, but it is not displayed prominently. But sometime soon, I guarantee the team's logo will be displaced for some corporate sponsor.

If you think this will never happen, you obviously haven't looked at a European soccer jersey. You will be hard pressed to find the Manchester United crest on its jersey at first glance, as the Vodafone logo is prominently displayed across the center.

Just think of the possibilities here; the Yankees logo could easily be shrunken to accommodate a more prominent larger Adidas logo.

Don't stop at the uniforms, though. Maybe instead of the National Football League, it should be EA Sports presents the National Football League? All the major awards and trophies would be in play too. The Heisman Trophy is already sponsored by Suzuki, why not the Vince Lombardi Trophy or the Stanley Cup? If the O'Brien Trophy -- you know, the NBA Finals trophy-- were sponsored, people would actually know what its name was.

College football has taken the lead in the sponsorship department. Not only is the BCS Trophy sponsored (by Sears of all companies), but also almost every single bowl game has a corporate entity attached. We now have the opportunity to watch such wonderful games as the Continental Tire Bowl and the GMAC Bowl on New Year's.

College basketball could stand to make some more money by selling the naming rights to each different round of the NCAA tournament. How does the Nokia Play-In Game or the Tostitos Sweet 16 sound?

Then again, corporate naming rights can only bring in so much money. Manchester United has taken great strides in alternative money sources. The team offers a full line of financial products, such as mortgages, credit cards, and savings accounts. You can even earn bonuses when the team is doing well! They also have an official team betting partner, Ladbrokes.com (I'm not making this up), and of course a dedicated MU television station, appropriately labeled MU.tv.

Last Thursday the team opened up its own movie theater in attempt to further integrate itself into every aspect of its fans' lives. There is also an official team video game (not EA Sports' FIFA series, ManU has developed its own game).

What's next, weddings on the pitch at Old Trafford?

Of all the sports team in the U.S., the Yankees would have the best chance of being able to offer similar services. The team already has the YES Network, which could be used to pitch Yankees Mutual Funds and the Yankees Travel Agency.

This summer, the Red Devils (Man U, for you non-soccer buffs) sold its franchise player, David Beckham, to Real Madrid for $45 million. This happens over on this side of the pond, but not with big-time players. Maybe if it did, the Texas Rangers could find a team to buy A-Rod (Perhaps the Mets? They did clear out all that payroll). If this was more fashionable, the Buffalo Sabres and Ottawa Senators could have sold of some of their players off to avoid bankruptcy.

With every team trying to become a big moneymaker, it is the fans that suffer in the end, as ticket prices continue to climb out of the (semi) affordable range. Four tickets to a Knicks game at the uppermost part of the Garden cost $124, and of course that doesn't include parking, food, etc. Across the river at Shea, the Mets have introduced a ticket-pricing plan where box seats for a game against the Yankees cost $15 more than the same seats for when the Brewers are in town.

While it becomes increasingly more expensive to attend games in person, at least you can still watch your favorite team on television. Well, except if you're a Chicago Blackhawks fan, in which case there are no home games on television at all. Team CEO Bill Wirtz came up with that brilliant idea, and attendance skyrocketed this season to seventh lowest in the NHL.

So as the NFL season starts up this Thursday, be sure to mark September 29 on your calendar. That's when the Bank One Bears play their first game at the new Soldier Field on Monday Night Football. Or maybe by then it will be "Boom! Tough Actin' Tinactin" presents Monday Night Football.