PARSIPPANY, N.J (May 27, 2003) – Cendant Corporation’s Hotel Group today announced that US Club Soccer has given preferred status to the Super 8®, Days Inn®, Ramada®, Travelodge®, Howard Johnson®, Knights Inn®, Villager, Wingate Inn® and AmeriHost Inn® hotel brands, as part of the US Club Soccer National Corporate Partner Program
Under the agreement, Cendant-franchised hotels will host US Club Soccer National Cup Championship Regional events and its Championship Final. Also, member teams and individual members will qualify for a discount of at least 10 percent when they stay at participating hotels.
US Club Soccer will promote Cendant’s brands to its members through the mail, e-mail and on its Web site, www.usclubsoccer.org.
“The agreement with the USCS will expose Cendant’s franchised hotels to a wider audience,” said Tim Hamid, vice president of Cendant Hotel Group’s Worldwide Sales department. “We expect it to drive incremental room nights to our franchisees and help them weather the current economic slowdown.”
US Club Soccer is a member of the United States Soccer Federation, the national governing body for soccer. The group is a non-profit organization committed exclusively to the support and development of competitive soccer clubs.
“We’re excited about our relationship with Cendant,” stated Bill Sage, US Club Soccer Chief Executive Officer. “As an organization that represents the elite youth soccer players in the United States, we’re well aware of their substantial travel needs. A program that assists in booking their hotels and delivering competitive prices is of great value.”
The agreement was brokered by US Club Soccer’s marketing agency, Charlotte, NC-based RMG3, Inc.
About Cendant
Cendant Corporation’s Hotel Group, based in Parsippany, N.J., is the world’s largest lodging franchisor with 6,478 open hotels representing 529,158 rooms on five continents. Cendant’s franchised hotels sell one out of every four economy and midpriced room-nights in the United States, and Cendant franchises 11.8 percent of the entire U.S. hotel room supply, according to Smith Travel Research. All hotels are individually owned and operated under franchise agreements with Cendant subsidiaries.
About US Club Soccer
U.S. Club Soccer, a member of the United States Soccer Federation, the national governing body for soccer, is a non-profit organization committed exclusively to the support and development of competitive soccer clubs. It is founded on the belief that soccer clubs, which are in the business of elite player development, need an organization of their own to foster growth, address concerns, and sanction and provide programs with a minimum of rules and restrictions. US Club Soccer sanctions events from local leagues to National Championships and is the Official Grassroots Partner of Major League Soccer. For more information, visit www.usclubsoccer.org. US Club Soccer’s National Corporate Partner Program provides companies with the ability to connect to its highly desirable demographic groups of soccer families and elite teenage athletes, through venue grassroots marketing, branding assets, direct marketing, and internet elements.
About RMG3
RMG3 is a full-service Media, Marketing and Merchandising agency, providing such services as web site development, e-commerce consultation, and sponsorship solicitation. RMG3 provides web site customers with its proprietary 1Touch™ Content Management Tool for self-publishing. RMG3 is a privately held corporation with its US headquarters in Charlotte, NC, and branch offices in Chicago, Dallas, and Los Angeles. A selection from RMG3’s client list includes: Alltel; the Arena Football League; FIFA; Ford; FoxSports.com; Masterfoods; Mazda Rev It Up; MSNBC; the National Guard; Speedway Motorsports (SMI); Speed Channel; the US Men’s National Soccer Team Players Association; the WUSA; and the West Coast Conference. For more information about RMG3, please visit www.rmg3.com or call 704-377-7477 or e-mail info@rmg3.com.
