LA Blues Soccer Club Appoints Wardour And Oxford As Its Global Business Development Agency

Online, March 10, 2011 (Newswire.com) - On the heels of its successful establishment and launch in December 2010, the Los Angeles Blues Soccer Club has appointed Wardour And Oxford as its global business development agency, driving the team's national and global commercial, sponsorship and marketing efforts.

LA Blues have entered the USL PRO league at a pivotal juncture in the sport's national development with growth statistically pitting soccer favourably against America's traditional Big Four sports including American football, basketball, ice hockey and baseball. As a spectator sport, attendance at soccer games now supersedes per game figures over ice hockey and basketball. As a participation sport, soccer is officially the most played game for youths in America.

With consumer-fuelled demand, U.S networks such as ESPN and Fox have soccer-dedicated channels, while ABC and GolTV provide coverage of international games from the English, Spanish and Italian leagues.

LA Blues will debut in 2011 with head coach Charlie Naimo, who successfully led the women's Pali Blues team to consecutive USL W-league championships in 2009 and 2010. Naimo's new squad features star players including Oscar Dautt, Cesar Rivera, Josh Tudela and Walter Gaitan, who have, by virtue of their accomplishments and loyal following, driven significant fan interest, anticipation and expectations for a successful inaugural year.

LA Blues home venue is Titan Stadium on the campus of California State University - Fullerton, while other road games this year are slated in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Puerto Rico and Antigua.

LA Blues General Manager Alyse LaHue said: "LA Blues Soccer Club is looking forward to expanding our network and strengthening our brand through this strategic alliance with Wardour And Oxford. Wempy and his team are committed to working closely with the Blues organization on the creation of local, and even international, opportunities via their global experience and expertise."

Wardour And Oxford's CEO Wempy Dyocta Koto said: "We are proud to be appointed by the Los Angeles Blues as their global business development agency. Soccer has emerged to be one of America's fastest-rising sports with a national audience of 24.3 million viewers watching the 2010 FIFA World Cup final from the ABC and Spanish telecasts on Univision. This outstrips viewership of institutional American sports events such as baseball's 2010 World Series between the San Francisco Giants and Texas Rangers".

Koto added: "Whether watching the games live at Fullerton, streamed live on the internet or live on television's Fox Soccer Channel, the LA Blues will be the team to watch in this year's USL PRO league. With Charlie Naimo's successful coaching track record and the team boasting some of the sport's hottest talents, expectations are rising for an eventful season. Wardour And Oxford will be working closely with LA Blues leadership to identify and sign new local, national and international sponsors and strategic partners. With the team's new sponsors including Nike and Marriott Fullerton, Wardour And Oxford is on an ambitious path to acquire more brands who share the LA Blues' ambitions, aspirations, vision and acumen to be on the crest of what will be an enormous wave of strategic commercial opportunities".