Request ID: FOI-1320-2223 Date published: 29 September 2022
You asked
This is an information request relating to the sponsoring of stations on the London Underground.
Please include the information broken down for each of the following financial years; 2019/20, 2020/21, 2021/22:
• The annual income for sponsorships of London Underground stations and the London Underground map
• The total financial value of all offers for sponsorship of London Underground stations and the London Underground map, including offers which weren’t accepted
By sponsorship of London Underground stations I mean any station which has been renamed, partially renamed or where information about a business has been included as part of station announcements, for example Madame Tussauds and Baker Street.
By sponsorship of the London Underground map I am referring to sponsorships such as Ikea’s recent agreement.
For point two, I do not believe I am asking for commercially sensitive information, as would be exempt under S43, as I am not looking for any specific offers, only the total value of all offers.
Please also provide the following information:
• Whether any estimate has been made about the annual income TfL could receive if sponsorship rights to London Underground stations or the map was extended
• If so, what the estimate is
We answered
Our Ref: FOI-1320-2223
Thank you for your request received on 2 September 2022 asking for information about TfL sponsorship. Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act and our information access policy. I can confirm we hold some of the information you require. You asked: Please include the information broken down for each of the following financial years; 2019/20, 2020/21, 2021/22:
• The annual income for sponsorships of London Underground stations and the London Underground map
Financial Year
Sponsorship income from London Underground Stations and London Underground Map
2019-2020
£2,472, 816
2020-2021
£2,892,000
2021-2022
£1,288,000
Contracts with all sponsors and partners can be found on the TfL website: https://tfl.gov.uk/corporate/publications-and-reports/contracts
• The total financial value of all offers for sponsorship of London Underground stations and the London Underground map, including offers which weren’t accepted
Financial Year
Total financial value of all offers for sponsorship of London Underground stations and the London Underground Map
2019-2020
£2,472, 816
2020-2021
£2,892,000
2021-2022
£1,288,000
We are not approached with offers. Sponsorship is secured by pro-actively selling opportunities to the market, offers will often be beneath the price we put to the market and then negotiate to an agreed position. However, organisations will sometimes approach us with an idea and a budget asking us to create a proposal. The figures cover income from all sponsorship and activations with brands on London Underground stations: temporary / partial renames and short term activations. Case studies of the sponsorships and activations we have run on the London Underground can also be found on our website: https://content.tfl.gov.uk/commercial-partnerships-case-studies.pdf More information on our transparency policy regarding contracts with our sponsors/commercial partners is available on our website: https://tfl.gov.uk/info-for/business-and-advertisers/transparency-policy-on-commercial-partnerships Please also provide the following information:
• Whether any estimate has been made about the annual income TfL could receive if sponsorship rights to London Underground stations or the map was extended • If so, what the estimate is We do not have an estimate of the annual income TfL would receive if rights are extended. Sponsorship rights across London Underground are very broad and as such are not a limiting factor to income. Income is a function of market demand, cost of implementation and resource available to sell and manage the partnerships. If this is not the information you are looking for please feel free to contact me. Please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal.
Yours sincerely
Gemma Jacob Senior FOI Case Officer FOI Case Management Team General Counsel Transport for London
