Dive Brief:
- Sutter Health signed a multi-year deal making it the preferred healthcare provider of the Oakland Athletics baseball team, the Sacramento Business Journal reported.
- Through the agreement, announced Thursday, Sutter will facilitate health and wellness programs with the team and fans, including a new youth wellness program.
- This is not Sutter’s first rodeo with major league sports. In January, the company inked a multi-year deal to sponsor the jerseys for soccer’s San Jose Earthquakes.
Dive Insight:
Under the deal, Sutter will sponsor Breast Cancer Awareness Day, the 7th inning stretch and Fitness Sluggers (the youth wellness program). The latter will focus on getting kids to exercise daily, eat healthy foods, practice sun safety and develop teamwork. The program will be rolled out at local YMCAs and community organizations, the ball team said.
In return, Sutter’s will get its logo on the digital backstop display during at-bats, as well as signage inside the stadium.
The deal follows similar ones between healthcare organizations and professional sports teams in recent years, according to the Sacramento Business Journal. Among such partnerships are Kaiser Permanente/Sacramento Kings, and UC Davis Children’s Hospital/Sacramento Republic FC soccer team.
“Healthcare is a team sport and partnering with the A’s gives us a special way to connect with fans and their families,” Sarah Krevans, president and CEO of Sacramento-based Sutter, said in a news release.