Concacaf brings commercial sales in-house as SUM deal ends
Concacaf will take greater control of sponsorship sales and partnership management after agreeing not to renew its exclusive US commercial sales agreement with Soccer United Marketing at the end of 2026.
Concacaf is bringing commercial sales and partnership management in-house as its decade-long exclusive US sales agreement with Soccer United Marketing (SUM) approaches its expiry.Chief commercial officer Heidi Pellerano will oversee partnership sales and management as the confederation seeks to expand its sponsorship portfolio and work with a wider range of partners across its competitions.Concacaf president and FIFA vice-president Victor Montagliani said: “Over the past decade, we have worked hard to transform Concacaf, strengthen our competitions, and create new opportunities for our Member Associations and commercial partners. SUM has been an important partner throughout this journey, and I want to thank them for their commitment and contributions to our Confederation’s growth.“As we enter this next chapter, we are excited to build on that foundation, strengthen our commercial capabilities, and develop new partnerships that will support the continued growth of football across our region.”The confederation and SUM, the commercial subsidiary of Major League Soccer, have mutually agreed not to extend the exclusive arrangement beyond December 2026.Their relationship will continue through work on marketing and ticket sales for major events, including the 2027 Nations League Finals at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles and the 2027 Gold Cup.SUM said: “Soccer United Marketing is proud of what we have accomplished in partnership with Concacaf to help grow the commercial business of soccer throughout the region and look forward to continuing our collaboration with them on other key initiatives.”Concacaf is recruiting for three Miami-based commercial positions, including a head of commercial partnerships and business development, as it builds the team responsible for the new approach.Its existing sponsors include Aramco, Macron, Molten, Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, Riyadh Air and the Saudi Tourism Authority.The change follows a period of expansion in Concacaf’s competition calendar and broadcast distribution, providing a broader range of properties around which to develop sponsorship packages.Recent US broadcast agreements include FOX Sports for English-language coverage of the Gold Cup and Nations League, alongside TelevisaUnivision’s Spanish-language rights to those competitions and Concacaf’s women’s tournaments.CBS Sports also holds English-language rights to the women’s competitions and has secured exclusive English- and Spanish-language coverage of the Champions Cup.The move follows US Soccer’s decision to end its own long-running SUM relationship at the close of 2022 and assume direct responsibility for its commercial business.US Soccer’s annual commercial revenue subsequently increased from US$61m in the 2023 financial year to US$168m in 2026, although that growth also coincided with the build-up to the North American World Cup.SUM retains its US commercial agency role for the Mexican national team and continues to handle sales for MLS, Leagues Cup and Campeones Cup.