5:59PM, Tue Oct 9, 2012

Wonga Renames Newcastle's Stadium St James' Park

By Neal Walker Location: Newcastle

Pardew: Name change 'hurt me and hurt the team'.

Wonga will rename Newcastle's Sports Direct Arena St James' Park as part of a new sponsorship deal.

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The payday loans company were announced as the shirt sponsor in a four-year deal today, and in a surprise move it was revealed they had also bought the stadium naming rights.

Rather than naming the stadium to advertise their brand, the company has opted to revert to the stadium's original name.

Managing director Derek Llambias said the name change would happen before the Wear Tyne derby at the Stadium of Light on October 21.

St James' Park was renamed the Sports Direct Arena in November 2011, in a temporary deal with owner Mike Ashley's sportswear empire.

VIDEO: Newcastle fans give their views on the return of the St James' Park name

A Wonga spokesman said: "We listened over the last three days and we saw what really matters to the fans.

"Football is an emotional sport and it's obviously really important to them. We listened to what they wanted and that is why we have done it."

As well becoming the club's main commercial sponsor, Wonga will invest at least £1.5m in the club's Academy and the Newcastle United Foundation Enterprise Scheme, which sees 15-16 year olds given employment opportunities through training courses.

Derek Llambias, Managing Director of Newcastle United, said: "We are building a club that can regularly compete for top honours at the highest level.

"As everyone knows, a strong commercial programme is vital to this goal and I am delighted to welcome Wonga into the fold as our lead commercial partner, alongside Puma and Sports Direct.

"Throughout our discussions Wonga's desire to help us invest in our young playing talent, the local community and new fan initiatives really impressed us and stood them apart from other candidates."

Other initiatives with Wonga will include a forum with the fans for discussing ideas for fan involvement, and working on a specific new initiative to involve fans in the design of the shirt.

Errol Damelin, founder and CEO of Wonga said: "We're really proud to be involved with Newcastle United.

"It is one of the biggest and most important clubs in the UK by any measure and has a fantastic following around the world. We're also really excited about investing in future stars both on and off the field.

VIDEO: Councillor Nick Forbes discusses the deal on Monday

"The Academy and the Enterprise Scheme gives us the opportunity to make a big difference."

The move to make Wonga the club's shirt sponsor has been met with criticism from local MPs and councillors.

Leader of Newcastle City Council Nick Forbes sent a letter to Newcastle owner Mike Ashley on Monday, warning of the "social consequences of the deal", and claiming the deal would be the "wrong image for Newcastle, NUFC, and football as a sport".

Wonga offers short-term loans at a rate of 4,214 percent APR. That compares to rates on certain credit cards such as Barclaycard Platinum of 7.9 percent.

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