Virgin Trains named as official sponsor to Manchester City FC's London events series
Premier League club Manchester City have named Virgin Trains as the official travel partner for their London-based events series, City in the City.
The sponsorship will see the train operating company sponsor the club’s behind-the-scenes events programme which caters to fans and corporate guests in an attempt to promote the brand in London.
Previous events have offered guests the opportunity to attend talks with key people involved in the club such as president of New York City FC, Tom Glick, as well as Q&A’s with manager Manuel Pellegrini and team captain Vincent Kompany.
As part of the deal Virgin will offer Manchester City fan club members travel discounts along its west coast network, including a 25 per cent discount on advance off-peak fares.
Danny Wilson, Manchester City’s director of stadium sales and operations, said the club was “delighted” to partner with virgin Trains to “ensure Manchester City and the Etihad Stadium are as accessible as possible to our loyal fan base".
He added that the discount available to its Cityzen fan club members would “provide real value for money, whether they are travelling on a matchday or for other non-football purposes.".
General manager for the North West, Virgin Trains, Gary Iddon, said the company was “very proud to be the official travel provider of City in the City, and excited to be working with Manchester City FC on a number of initiatives aimed at improving the experience of matchday travel for both their supporters and our non-football customers as well as on the series of events which makes City in the City unique".
The deal sees Virgin Trains become the second brand to sponsor City in the City, joining the series presenting sponsor Henley Investments.