The P&O Cruises’ logo will soon adorn the uniforms of the Southampton Football Club team members, thanks to a new partnership between the cruise line and the athletic club.
P&O’s logo, showing the cruise line’s name in blue under the image of a golden sun, will be added to the uniform sleeves worn by the club’s men’s, women’s, and academy teams.
The agreement represents the first time that P&O Cruises has partnered with a sports organization, and will give the cruise line exposure to thousands of fans who watch the matches.
Along with the logo placement, the pact will feature several benefits for the cruise line’s guests and the football club members, such as special cruise offers, tickets to matches, meet-and-greets, and coaching onboard cruise ships.
The football club’s first match of the season, when the logo will make its debut on the uniform sleeves, is set for August 7, 2024, as Southampton Football Club’s men’s First Team takes to the field.
Football fans who buy or already own the football club’s newest replica kits can visit the Southampton Football Club stadium store and have the P&O Cruises logo applied to their shirts free of charge. The offer is valid starting August 6, 2024.
The cruise line, a brand of Carnival Corporation that caters to the UK market, has a long history with Southampton and is a steady presence in the port, with six ships based there during the summer season.
“P&O Cruises is Britain’s favorite cruise line, with a long history sailing from the port of Southampton. Southampton Football Club is one of the oldest and most forward-thinking clubs in English football, with a passionate and dedicated following of supporters in the city and beyond. It is a natural partnership for both of us,” said Paul Ludlow, president of P&O Cruises and Carnival UK.
“Investing in our home port regions and in the communities in which we live and visit is vitally important to us and this partnership underpins our commitment to the region,” added Ludlow.
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The sponsorship agreement is described as a multi-year partnership, although the cruise line did not disclose the timeframe, nor any financial arrangement between the two entities.
“P&O Cruises is an organization right at the heart in our city, much like us. With customer service and local community central to its business, its values are aligned to our own,” said Phil Parsons, CEO of Southampton Football Club.
“We look forward to what this partnership will bring to our fans and the local community,” Parsons added.
Cruise Line Offers Variety of Sailings From Southampton
P&O Cruise’s ships currently operating from Southampton include the 3,600-guest Britannia; Iona and Arvia, both accommodating 5,200 guests; the 3,100-guest Ventura; the 2,100-guest Arcadia; and the 1,878-guest Aurora.
Britannia will celebrate her 10th anniversary in 2025, with a special British Isles voyage. The 14-night cruise will feature Belfast’s Giant’s Causeway, in Northern Ireland, along with a Liverpool Beatles-themed itinerary.
The ship is sailing a variety of itineraries from Southampton, including an August 16, 2024 departure of a 14-night Mediterranean Islands cruise. The voyage calls at Cadiz, Ibiza, Mallorca, Alicante, Cartagena, all in Spain; and Gibraltar.
P&O Cruises’ newest ship, Arvia, on August 18, 2024 will begin a 14-night France and Spain cruise from the UK port. Cruise watchers will recall that the ship was the industry’s first to hold a beachside naming ceremony at a Caribbean island.
Arvia celebrated her christening in Barbados in March 2023, as the ship began her seasonal deployment there.
Iona, Ventura, Arcadia, and Aurora all currently sail from Southampton on itineraries that range from 3-day getaways to Guernsey, Channel Islands, to 7-day Norwegian fjords voyages, and 14-day cruises through the Mediterranean.
