AT&T Ends Yankees Sponsorship in Lowering of Its Sports Profile

(Bloomberg) -- AT&T Inc. likes to put its name and blue-sphere logo everywhere, but there’s one place you won’t find it anymore: near the New York Yankees.

The carrier walked away from its Yankees sponsorship deal after rival T-Mobile US Inc. expanded its relationship as the official wireless brand of Major League Baseball in March. With the ubiquitous magenta-colored presence of T-Mobile at MLB events, AT&T’s brand was lost in the scenery.

AT&T made the decision not to renew its agreement last year, the Dallas-based company said in a statement. It’s part of a broader rethinking of where the media-and-telecom colossus spends its money. AT&T’s debt load ballooned after the $85 billion acquisition of Time Warner Inc. in 2018, and now it’s watching its expenses carefully.

“This decision was part of our continuous evaluation of our corporate sponsorship portfolio nationwide, to better engage customers in new and meaningful ways across a variety of interests,” the carrier said.

The move follows another high-profile sports breakup for AT&T. The company took down its name from AT&T Park, home of the San Francisco Giants, ceding the venue to Oracle Corp.

The stadium had been in the AT&T family since it opened in 2000, initially as PacBell Park, which later became SBC Park and eventually AT&T Park in 2006. In January 2019, Oracle signed a $200 million, 20-year deal to rechristen the waterfront stadium Oracle Park.

Reducing Debt

AT&T has been on a mission to lower its debt, which totaled $161 billion at the end of the year. As part of the plan, the company has been trimming costs, selling assets and reviewing some of its spending like big marketing programs, including sports affiliations.

While some sponsorships, like the Yankees, get dropped, there are other iconic venues that will remain closely linked to AT&T’s brand. Since Dallas is its home turf, there’s little chance another company’s name replaces AT&T on the Dallas Cowboys’ stadium. The same is true in San Antonio, where AT&T Center is home to the Spurs basketball team.

And AT&T remains a fixture at major annual golf events such as the Masters Tournament and Pebble Beach Pro-Am tournament.

AT&T also forged closer ties to the National Basketball Association through its 2018 acquisition of Time Warner, which included the Turner Network TV partnership. Continuing its expansion into basketball, AT&T signed a multiyear deal last year with the NBA to be the official sponsor of events like the All-Star Game. AT&T also has a marketing agreement with the Women’s National Basketball Association. In college basketball, the company has been a major partner with the NCAA during March Madness and the Final Four championship.

“AT&T, like many big advertisers, is always measuring the effectiveness of its marketing spending,” said Roger Entner, an analyst with Recon Analytics. “AT&T wants to optimize its exposure and is always looking to get the biggest bang for its buck.”

To contact the reporters on this story: Scott Moritz in New York at smoritz6@bloomberg.net;Scott Soshnick in New York at ssoshnick@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Nick Turner at nturner7@bloomberg.net

©2020 Bloomberg L.P.