Matt Maher: Sneering over Walsall deal misses point
There is undoubtedly some amusement to be found in Walsall’s sponsorship deal with Poundland.
A club with a reputation, deserved or otherwise, for not exactly splashing the cash, teaming up with a firm which now recognised in the urban lexicon as a definition for cheap?
The gag is obvious, if not exactly side-splitting. Both parties were quick to acknowledge it.
“You’ll get the banter,” admitted Saddlers chairman Leigh Pomlett, while Poundland managing director Barry Williams predicted fans would have “a bit of fun” over the deal.
There’s nothing wrong with that. Football is an industry where it generally pays not to take yourself too seriously.
Less palatable has been some of the ill-informed snobbery seen elsewhere, even though a depressingly predictable article on The Sun website, hastily thrown together using the social media reactions of rival supporters, will have done more to get Saddlers fans unsure about the deal onside than any PR pronouncements.
Ignoring the fact most supporters don’t care a jot about the logo on the front of a shirt, compared to the quality of the player wearing it, what precisely is the embarrassment in being sponsored by a discount retailer?
It is certainly less troubling than having your club backed by a casino, a shady Far Eastern cryptocurrency firm or, to use a recent local example, a pawnbroker at the height of a recession.
Earlier this year, Manchester City ended a partnership with 3Key after online searches suggested the crypto business didn’t actually exist. There’s embarrassment for you.
The bottom line is always the most critical element of any sponsorship deal. Walsall’s tie-up with Poundland has been hailed the largest in Saddlers history, a significant boost for a club which only ended up in the black last season courtesy of a £500,000 government loan. With the impact of the pandemic still being felt, this is not a time when any club outside the Premier League elite (and even a few within it) can afford to get too sniffy.
In an ideal world, no club would need to sell naming rights to their stadium – but we are a long way from an ideal world. Besides, for most supporters, Bescot will always be Bescot, no matter what the paperwork might say.
