General Motors of Canada is deepening its ties to CFL football through a new two-year sponsorship deal with the Montreal Alouettes.

As a long-term partner of the CFL, GMC has activated through advertising during pre-shows and games, as well as through sponsorships of specific in-game elements.

The deal with the Alouettes, arranged with help from their mutual media agency Carat, will begin as a pure media buy and see GMC promote its new Sierra truck model through TV, digital, social media and in-stadium advertising. GMC will become the team’s exclusive automotive and truck manufacturer, while the 2014 Sierra will be its official vehicle.

GMC will also be able to leverage Alouettes coaches, players and cheerleaders in its advertising.

Mark Alger, advertising manager, GMC, Buick and Cadillac, tells MiC that this marks the first time that the brand has taken its CFL sponsorship to the regional level and partnered with a team.

He says it was a good fit for GMC because it will bolster the brand’s Quebec presence, and allow it to reach its primary audience of affluent males aged 35 to 55 and engage CFL fans more directly through the team that they love.

He adds that the Alouettes were a good match for GMC’s “professional grade” brand positioning given the expertise that players require.

Alger says that as the partnership develops, GMC will also look to work with its creative agency Leo Burnett and its experiential agency MacLaren Momentum to roll out activations that go beyond simple media buys.

Photo: Ice Man Photography, Flickr Creative Commons