Manchester United Shirts Add To AIG Outrage
Washington continues to express outrage over AIG's $165 million in bonuses but AIG has another bill to pay, for its contract with soccer team Manchester United. Like some companies which pay for naming rights for stadiums, AIG signed a contact in 2006 for a four-year deal with the British team to have AIG on their shirts. Cityfile reports that while the company has said they won't renew the deal, they haven't canceled the existing contract which means that Manchester United could get $28 million more from the team before the original contract ends in May 2010.
The deal was originally made by then Chief Executive Martin Sullivan who wanted AIG to be a name recognized worldwide by partnering with one of the world's most popular sports teams. BNET has a cheeky suggestion on what the American people should request from AIG in regards to this deal. They say that since we own 80 percent of AIG we could have the shirts changed to say "United States United" or even USA. Of course, BNET's Ed Leefeldt also says maybe it's time to give a name change to "Citi Field" which received millions from struggling Citigroup. Good luck with that.
