At the end of January, the city announced a competition for the title sponsor of the stadium where Wisła Kraków plays its matches. However, this process did not yield a winner as no offers were received by the Sports Infrastructure Board in Krakow. Now, however, there is a chance that the facility at Reymonta will soon have a sponsor.

High costs

The Henryk Reyman City Stadium is the largest football venue in Krakow. The main lessee of the stadium is Wisła Kraków, which uses offices within the arena daily and the entire facility during matches. Since February 1 of this year, the monthly office lease costs 56,000 PLN, while the entire stadium on match days costs as much as 202,000 PLN. In 2023, both revenues and operating costs of the stadium increased. You don't need to worry about high costs. Just check out the offers of guides for different online casinos. On this page experts recommend the best casino sites for various categories, and help you find a bonus that suits your tastes.

According to information provided a few months ago by sport.lovekrakow.pl, maintenance costs increased by approximately 3.3 million PLN compared to 2022. Revenues also increased by exactly 2.8 million PLN. Despite this, the overall balance ended up negative, and the city of Krakow subsidized the facility with nearly 933,000 PLN for its operations. Additionally, expenses related to necessary renovations exceeded 540,000 PLN.

© Grzegorz Kaliciak

Will Wisła's success help?

The solution to this situation was intended to be finding a title sponsor for the stadium, but this initiative failed. Although, after the unsuccessful tender, the Sports Infrastructure Board took matters into its own hands and began direct discussions with potentially interested entities, no concrete information has emerged thus far.

However, Wisła Kraków's victory in the Polish Cup could now help. This success means that the White Star will participate in European cup qualifiers in the summer. International matches would allow a potential title sponsor to promote themselves not only in Poland but also in Europe. This is precisely the argument currently being emphasized by the club's leaders and the Sports Infrastructure Board.

The discussions aimed at securing a title sponsor for the Henryk Reyman City Stadium in Krakow are currently confidential, stemming from commercial secrecy and the expectations of potential partners. Once agreements are formalized, we will promptly inform the public, informs Anna Nowosielska, head of communications at the Sports Infrastructure Board in Krakow, as quoted by Gazeta Krakowska.

© Grzegorz Kaliciak

What is the tender about?

This will increase the prestige of the facility, help with maintenance, or even further modernization, because every modern sports facility constantly requires new funds, said Krzysztof Kowal, director of the Sports Infrastructure Board and operator of the stadium, in an interview with LoveKraków.pl last year.

The tender concerns the right to use the title sponsor's trademark in the name of the Wisła Kraków stadium, which will be displayed on the building's facade and the media pavilion's facade, as well as in official online channels and all promotional materials. The title sponsor will also have the right to use the image of the stadium for their own marketing purposes and will be able to advertise on the stadium's television during events. The tender conditions also include placing the stadium's name in at least five locations on road signs on the main access roads to the facility and the city itself, as well as on directional and locality signs.

The stadium's name will also be included in the city's public transportation system at a selected bus or tram stop and in the schedules, upon obtaining approval from the Public Transport Authority. The sponsor will also receive advertising rights including: advertising on the stadium floor, stairs, seats in its hall, and the stairwell of each stand. The costs of the aforementioned activities will be borne by the title sponsor.

© Grzegorz Kaliciak

Without Henryk Reyman?

The city wants the stadium to have a sponsor similar to the multipurpose arena, commonly known as Tauron Arena. Currently, the Wisła Kraków stadium is named after Henryk Reyman, the best scorer in the club's history, and this will likely remain the case even if a sponsor is found. A similar situation exists in Płock, where after thorough renovation of the Kazimierz Górski stadium, the patron's name remained in place, with only the title sponsor's name, Orlen, added.

According to the tender regulations, the name of the Wisła Kraków stadium cannot be competitive with the club's strategic, technical, or main sponsors. Thus, Wisła Kraków continues to have a significant influence on the stadium and its future. After the winner of the tender is selected and a new name for the facility is proposed, it must still be approved by the Krakow City Council.

© Grzegorz Kaliciak

Socios have a plan

Another idea to increase revenue involves utilizing the vast spaces within the stadium, much of which has remained undeveloped since the facility's inception. Recently, the Socios Wisła Kraków Association posted an intriguing message on social media: Over the last few months, we've been working on a new restaurant project! It will be a space covering over 600 m², located in one of the stadium's corners! Soon - pending approval from the City of Krakow authorities - we will present the project concept to Socios Wisła members.

At this point, there are no specific details on this matter, but it's known that this restaurant could be located in the northwest or southeast corner, as these are the only two remaining undeveloped areas.