Does Sports Deal Commit Nissan to the UK?
Photo: Jeff Djevdet
We have been talking a lot about the Brexit here at The News Wheel, and to be fair, we should be. This European shakeup could cause car manufacturers to relocate manufacturing facilities, make cars more expensive in Great Britain, lead to a Scottish exit from the United Kingdom… the list goes on and on. No matter what side of the issue you’re on, you have to admit that the UK leaving the EU will not happen silently, without any economic consequences.
Shortly after the vote, we commented that Nissan, like many international companies, had a lot of soul searching to do concerning its British facility. The people of Sunderland, where the plant is located, voted overwhelmingly to leave the EU (against Nissan’s advice). Nissan could chose to leave the area in the interest of saving money, but that could desolate the region that, before Nissan, relied on a dying mining industry. Before the vote, Nissan said that it was committed to its UK facility, but the future was still uncertain following the referendum, and the automaker has stayed pretty quiet on the issue (making its employees nervous).
Earlier this month, Nissan signed on to an extensive partnership with British broadcaster Sky Sports, expanding its football (soccer) sponsorship to become the network’s weekend coverage sponsor of the. This is in addition to its UEFA Champions League sponsorship, making Nissan a major player in British sports coverage.
Does this mean that Nissan is staying in the UK? It’s a pretty big sponsorship investment, so this could possibly be the automaker deepening its ties with the country in preparation for a future together. Time will certainly tell, but hopefully this will make the chances look a bit more hopeful.
News Source: Manufacturing and Engineering Magazine (UK)
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