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Clip below is in several media channels. Will funnel dollars toward both USNA and USMA athletic programs. 
USAA named sponsor of Army-Navy football game
Financial services company signs 10-year agreement
By BILL WAGNER, Staff Writer <mailto:bwagner@capitalgazette.com>
Published 07/20/09
For years there have been rumors that officials at the nation's two oldest service academies were considering commercial sponsorship of the Army-Navy football game.
Those rumors became reality today with the announcement that USAA - the United Services Automobile Association - will serve as presenting sponsor of the classic annual rivalry.
The Naval Academy and U. S. Military Academy jointly announced this morning that the financial services company has signed a 10-year agreement to sponsor the service academy showdown. This year's Army-Navy game will be held Dec. 12 at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia.
"We are proud to be able to team up with USAA for sponsorship of this cherished and respected event," Naval Academy Athletic Director Chet Gladchuk said in a statement. "Army, Navy and USAA will become synonymous over the next few years as we collectively accentuate the history, tradition and competitive spirit of this national treasure."
USAA is among the premier providers of banking products, insurance, investments and financial planning to current and former members of the U.S. military and their families, including the midshipmen and cadets at the two academies.
Headquartered in San Antonio, Texas, USAA boasts 6.8 million members, all of whom have some connection to the military. The organization was founded in 1922 by a group of U.S. Army officers to self-insure each other when they were unable to secure auto insurance due to the perception that they were a high-risk group, according to Wikipedia.
"I know USAA's employees and members feel they have a personal stake in the Army-Navy game," said retired Army Maj. Gen. Joe Robles, USAA president and CEO. "Our company was founded by military members for military members, so it's an honor for us to work with the academies to secure the long-term success and visibility of the America's game."
Gladchuk said USAA has been a corporate partner with the Army and Navy athletic programs for many years. Army Athletic Director Kevin Anderson said signing a financial institution with such strong ties to the military as presenting sponsor of the Army-Navy football game made sense.
"USAA has proven time and again to be a tremendous supporter of the intercollegiate athletic programs at both Army and Navy," Anderson said. "We displayed great care in choosing the appropriate partner for this endeavor and feel we selected the perfect organization to properly represent America's game."
Terms of the agreement were not disclosed nor were particulars of what USAA will receive in return for its sponsorship. A new Army-Navy game logo has been released that includes the line "presented by USAA."
Gladchuk said there are 20 different tenets in the contract that speak to how USAA will be rewarded in terms of publicity and advertising.
"USAA is extremely honored to be the only corporate entity ever associated with this game in a highly visible way," Gladchuk said. "USAA will be visible in many different respects with the majority of that visibility coming from our association with CBS television."
CBS Television recently signed a 10-year contract to continue broadcasting the Army-Navy football game. For the first time, the contest will be held on the second - rather than the first - Saturday in December, making it the only Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly Division I-A) contest on that date.
Gladchuk said he has seriously considered the prospect of finding a sponsor for the Army-Navy football game since taking over as Naval Academy athletic director in September 2001.
"It is something that has always been on the table. We were in no hurry to rush into anything. We wanted to make sure we found the right partnership," he said.
Gladchuk and Anderson rejected the prospect of signing a title sponsor for the game. That has become common in college football, which now has such events as the FedEx Orange Bowl and Tostitos Fiesta Bowl.
"This was a big, big step for Army and Navy. We didn't feel a title sponsors would be appropriate. We felt that would be overly commercial," Gladchuk said. "A presenting sponsor is more subtle. We didn't want anything to supersede the game."
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bwagner@capitalgazette.com
USAA named sponsor of Army-Navy football game
Financial services company signs 10-year agreement
By BILL WAGNER, Staff Writer <mailto:bwagner@capitalgazette.com>
Published 07/20/09
For years there have been rumors that officials at the nation's two oldest service academies were considering commercial sponsorship of the Army-Navy football game.
Those rumors became reality today with the announcement that USAA - the United Services Automobile Association - will serve as presenting sponsor of the classic annual rivalry.
The Naval Academy and U. S. Military Academy jointly announced this morning that the financial services company has signed a 10-year agreement to sponsor the service academy showdown. This year's Army-Navy game will be held Dec. 12 at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia.
"We are proud to be able to team up with USAA for sponsorship of this cherished and respected event," Naval Academy Athletic Director Chet Gladchuk said in a statement. "Army, Navy and USAA will become synonymous over the next few years as we collectively accentuate the history, tradition and competitive spirit of this national treasure."
USAA is among the premier providers of banking products, insurance, investments and financial planning to current and former members of the U.S. military and their families, including the midshipmen and cadets at the two academies.
Headquartered in San Antonio, Texas, USAA boasts 6.8 million members, all of whom have some connection to the military. The organization was founded in 1922 by a group of U.S. Army officers to self-insure each other when they were unable to secure auto insurance due to the perception that they were a high-risk group, according to Wikipedia.
"I know USAA's employees and members feel they have a personal stake in the Army-Navy game," said retired Army Maj. Gen. Joe Robles, USAA president and CEO. "Our company was founded by military members for military members, so it's an honor for us to work with the academies to secure the long-term success and visibility of the America's game."
Gladchuk said USAA has been a corporate partner with the Army and Navy athletic programs for many years. Army Athletic Director Kevin Anderson said signing a financial institution with such strong ties to the military as presenting sponsor of the Army-Navy football game made sense.
"USAA has proven time and again to be a tremendous supporter of the intercollegiate athletic programs at both Army and Navy," Anderson said. "We displayed great care in choosing the appropriate partner for this endeavor and feel we selected the perfect organization to properly represent America's game."
Terms of the agreement were not disclosed nor were particulars of what USAA will receive in return for its sponsorship. A new Army-Navy game logo has been released that includes the line "presented by USAA."
Gladchuk said there are 20 different tenets in the contract that speak to how USAA will be rewarded in terms of publicity and advertising.
"USAA is extremely honored to be the only corporate entity ever associated with this game in a highly visible way," Gladchuk said. "USAA will be visible in many different respects with the majority of that visibility coming from our association with CBS television."
CBS Television recently signed a 10-year contract to continue broadcasting the Army-Navy football game. For the first time, the contest will be held on the second - rather than the first - Saturday in December, making it the only Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly Division I-A) contest on that date.
Gladchuk said he has seriously considered the prospect of finding a sponsor for the Army-Navy football game since taking over as Naval Academy athletic director in September 2001.
"It is something that has always been on the table. We were in no hurry to rush into anything. We wanted to make sure we found the right partnership," he said.
Gladchuk and Anderson rejected the prospect of signing a title sponsor for the game. That has become common in college football, which now has such events as the FedEx Orange Bowl and Tostitos Fiesta Bowl.
"This was a big, big step for Army and Navy. We didn't feel a title sponsors would be appropriate. We felt that would be overly commercial," Gladchuk said. "A presenting sponsor is more subtle. We didn't want anything to supersede the game."
---
bwagner@capitalgazette.com
