After recording its largest single-day sales total during last February’s Super Bowl as the game’s official pizza sponsor, Papa John’s International Inc. said it is extending its partnership with the National Football League and the Super Bowl for three more years.
Papa John's will be the official pizza sponsor of the NFL and its annual championship game, beginning with the kickoff of the 2010 season and extending through Super Bowls XLV, XLVI and XLVII, the pizza company said Tuesday. The partnerships also allows Papa John’s to use NFL trademarks and logos on its packaging and marketing materials.
The deal marks Papa John’s largest sponsorship commitment in its history, said Andrew Varga, chief marketing officer for the Louisville-based chain.
“The National Football League is the most highly regarded and popular brand in sports, with a commitment to quality that matches perfectly with the high standards of Papa John’s,” Varga said. “Papa John’s has always prided itself as being the preferred pizza of football fans. This sponsorship takes it to the next level. This is by far the largest sports-related financial commitment that our brand has made, and we believe this affiliation will greatly enhance our brand-building efforts over the next three years.”
The Super Bowl already has proved to be a sales-building tool for Papa John’s. On Feb. 7, when the New Orleans Saints beat the Indianapolis Colts in Super Bowl XLIV, Papa John’s sold more than 900,000 pizzas at its 2,800 restaurants in the United States. The chain offered a special Super XL IV pizza, an extra-large pie with four toppings for $11.99, during the game.
Papa John’s also has a longstanding sponsorship of college football, serving as the title sponsor of the PapaJohns.com Bowl and purchasing the naming rights to Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium in Louisville, where the University of Louisville football team plays its home games. The brand also is the official pizza of 11 NFL teams.
Papa John’s operates or franchises nearly 3,500 restaurants worldwide.
Contact Mark Brandau at [email protected].
