Report: Discover, Tostitos ending college football bowl title sponsor deals

The Fiesta Bowl will need new sponsorship for the first time in almost two decades. (Jennifer Stewart/Getty Images)

Discover and Tostitos are ending their title sponsorship of college football playoff bowl games, reports Michael Smith, John Ourand and Terry Lefton of Sports Business Journal.

The Orange and Fiesta bowls are part of the new College Football Playoff, which starts this December. A four-team playoff will help determine the national champion and replaces the Bowl Championship Series, which had been in effect since 1998.

For the past four years, Discover was title sponsor of the Orange Bowl. Tostitos has sponsored the Fiesta Bowl for the past 18 years, ending one of the longest sponsorships in college football.

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Last month, Northwestern Mutual, a financial services company, announced it was replacing Vizio as the sponsor of the Rose Bowl.

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Industry sources are not sure why Tostitos opted out, although the price increase on the title sponsorship could have played a role. Title sponsorship deals in the old BCS annually ran in the $15 million to $20 million range. Sources say that CFP title sponsorships are closer to $25 million a year, and ESPN is seeking six-year commitments.

Sources indicate that Capital One and ESPN have agreed on most terms for the Orange Bowl and they expect a deal could be announced as soon as this week. Byron Daub, Capital One’s senior director of sponsorships, is running point on the negotiations with ESPN. Ed Erhardt, president of global sales, and Rob Temple, vice president of sports management, have led the sales efforts for ESPN.

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