The Yale Athletics Department, the Greater New Haven Chamber of Commerce and three New Haven area sports ventures have launched Team New Haven, a unique marketing partnership between Yale football, SMG/New Haven Coliseum, the New Haven Ravens, Pilot Pen Tennis and the New Haven Knights hockey team.
Team New Haven aims "to make Greater New Haven a destination synonymous with live sports and entertainment excellence, thereby developing and enhancing mutually beneficial opportunities for the entire region," according to the group's mission statement. Formed as part of the Greater New Haven Sports Council, a Chamber of Commerce committee, Team New Haven is believed to be the only partnership of its kind in the United States bringing together four live sports attractions that play in four separate venues and cut across four different sports with no shared ownership.
As its first joint marketing initiative, Team New Haven produced a new multi-sport value ticket new to the region called the Sports Pass, which allows fans to see all four of the best live athletic events in Greater New Haven -- Yale football, New Haven Ravens baseball, New Haven Knights hockey and the Pilot Pen Tennis women's tournament -- for a discounted price. Sports Pass #1, which includes four tickets to each event, has a value of over $300 and is being offered for $100. Sports Pass #2, with two tickets for each event, is available for $75. Both packages include parking for all four events, and three of the events also include hot dogs, soft drinks and a souvenir program. An optional 5th ticket is available with Sports Pass #1 for $35.
"Team New Haven is a great example of Yale and the New Haven community working together," said Tom Beckett, Yale's director of athletics. "We anticipate another exciting season of Yale football in 2000, coming off the Ivy League title last fall. Adding to the interest of the Sports Pass and our opening day on Sept. 16 in the Yale Bowl is the hope that we will become the first team in the history of college football to win 800 games."
At a news conference introducing the new Team New Haven venture, New Haven Mayor John DeStefano Jr. said, "New Haven has always had a unique concentration of quality sporting events. This effort will finally bring the collective weight of these events together and make people aware of the range of activities right here in our own backyard."
John Burnap, co-chair of the Sports Council and general manager of the New Haven Coliseum, added, "Team New Haven has created a marketing partnership where everyone wins -- the teams, the region and, most importantly, the fans. Greater New Haven is Connecticut's center for sports, arts and entertainment, and this is one more way for us to collectively showcase the great things about the New Haven area."
According to Anthony J. Vallillo, chair of the Greater New Haven Chamber of Commerce, the Sports Pass "is a tremendous example of how the business community is working to make New Haven as attractive and competitive as any region in America for people to work, live and raise a family."
Sports fans can order either package via phone at (203) 503-6050, on the Internet at teamnewhaven.com, or in person at the Coliseum box office. A limited number of Sports Passes are available. Burnap said the Sports Pass makes it possible for anyone to afford to bring their family or a friend to all of the best live sports events in New Haven.
Team New Haven's newly launched web site provides information about the Sports Pass, other special offers and activities, and includes links to each individual team member site. Future plans for Team New Haven include cross-marketing programs, additional special offers, a winter FanFest, and sports programs and activities at other sites.
The Yale varsity football team, which has the most wins in the history of college football, looks to win its 800th game when the University of Dayton comes to Yale Bowl for the 2000 season opener on Sept. 16. The Bulldogs are the defending Ivy League champions and have won 13 Ancient Eight titles. The team is part of an athletic program at Yale that supports 33 varsity sports and a large intramural program.
The New Haven Ravens Professional Baseball Club, which plays its home games at historic Yale Field, is the Class AA affiliate of Major League Baseball's Seattle Mariners. The New Haven Knights UHL hockey team will begin its debut season at the New Haven Coliseum in October. The 2000 Pilot Pen Tennis Tournament, which will feature such top players as Venus Williams (the defending Pilot Pen champion) and Monica Seles, will be held Aug. 18-26 at the Connecticut Tennis Center at Yale.
-- By Thomas Violante
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