The EFL can confirm that Ignition Sports Media will continue to have a significant role in the EFL’s major events, as publisher of the official matchday programmes for the showpiece finals and presenting partner of the EFL Awards.
As the EFL’s Official Matchday Programme Publisher, Ignition will produce the official publication at the EFL’s five prestigious Wembley finals for the next three seasons in all three EFL competitions; the Carabao Cup Final, Checkatrade Trophy Final and the Sky Bet EFL, which culminates with three matches in three days in the Sky Bet Play-Off Finals.
In all, 120,000 programmes are produced over the course of the five finals and each edition will include exclusive interviews and imagery of the players involved in the big day. The recent Carabao Cup Final edition included feature interviews with Vincent Kompany, Jack Wilshere, John Stones and Aaron Ramsey, alongside unique messages from Arsene Wenger and Pep Guardiola.
Ignition are also the Presenting Partner at this Sunday’s star-studded 2018 EFL Awards, where clubs, managers, players and legends will come together to celebrate excellence on and off the pitch.
EFL Chief Executive Shaun Harvey is confident the renewed relationship will provide supporters with a unique insight into the showpiece events.
He said: “Over 300,000 supporters attended our Finals in 2016/17 and many of those will have taken home a matchday programme and shared it with others to read as a souvenir of their day out at Wembley Stadium.
“The programme has long been an integral feature of the matchday experience and our relationship with Ignition Sports Media will help us to deliver a product that is informative, engaging and of a quality that supporters will be proud to own.
“I am sure the EFL Awards will be a fitting occasion to celebrate the new partnership, with Ignition set to take on a key role as Presenting Partner for the night.”
Ignition are the market leader in UK sports event programme publishing. In addition to the EFL tie-up, they also count 20 of the EFL’s member clubs as valued clients with Checkatrade Trophy winners Lincoln City being the most recent addition into the Ignition stable when joining forces earlier this year.
The portfolio also includes other strategic clients from the SFA and WRU to Carabao Cup winners Manchester City, alongside a strong presence in the Aviva Premiership and the Super League, making them a market leader in publishing.
Ian Guildford, Managing Director for Ignition Sports Media, commented: “This is another very proud day for Ignition. We work with almost a third of the EFL’s member clubs and continuing our partnership with the EFL perfectly shows our diversity.
“As the EFL’s Official Matchday Programme Publishers, I think it’s our responsibility to ensure we can offer fantastic, cost-effective programmes to all member clubs and we will be doing just that this year.”