The Buffs Team up with McDonald’s for a Two Year Partnership to Give Fans Year-Round Exclusive Offers

DENVER – August 8, 2012 – McDonald’s is kicking off the new collegiate school year with the announcement of its partnership with the University of Colorado Athletic Department. The new partnership will cover the 2012 – 2014 athletic years giving students, alumni and fans alike year-round exclusive offers.

As part of the partnership, McDonald’s and the Buffs are giving students, alumni and fans the opportunity to pick up a CU branded Arch Card® at McDonald’s. Each time they show their Arch Card (at participating locations), they will receive a FREE Medium French Fries with purchase of a regular menu sandwich. Cardholders will also gain access to offers and discounts on CU tickets, apparel and merchandise.

Additional elements of the partnership include McDonald’s and the Ronald McDonald House Charities hosting a RMHC day at select basketball, football and volleyball games. As part of the partnership, families staying at the Ronald McDonald House will be given the opportunity to attend the game. An on-field/on-court presentation will be given by RMHC representatives and attendees during the chosen games. McDonald’s and CU will also be implementing fundraisers for RMHC throughout the year.

“McDonald’s owners/operators around the region are proud to partner with institutions like the University of Colorado to demonstrate our commitment to our consumers and show support for our state’s collegiate schools,” said Juan Samour, local McDonald’s owner/operator. “We look forward to activating this partnership in a meaningful way by offering both McDonald’s and CU’s biggest fans and alumni the best promotions and value across the state throughout the year.”

“We are pleased to partner with one of the most recognized leaders in Colorado in a collective effort to engage the statewide community,” said CU Athletics Director Mike Bohn. “When you add a marketing powerhouse as successful and proven as McDonald’s, it broadens our reach and opens new opportunities to offer even more value to the fans and customers we collectively interact with every day.”

“When we were building this partnership program, we envisioned including all the fans of CU and McDonald’s across the entire state and believe we’ve accomplished that in a significant way,” said Aaron Cook, senior account executive for Buffalo Sports Properties, a property of Learfield Sports and the multimedia rights holder for University of Colorado Athletics.

To celebrate this new partnership, fans are encouraged to pickup an arch card today at participating McDonald’s locations, visit cubuffs.com/mcdonalds for additional exclusive offers as well as follow McDonald’s and the University of Colorado Athletics on Twitter, @McD_Colorado and @CUBuffs.

About McDonald’s of Colorado 

Over 200 McDonald’s restaurants in the state of Colorado annually contribute $197.9 million to the Colorado economy and employ 8,180 people. For local employment information please visit www.mccolorado.com and for more information about McDonald’s visit www.mcdonalds.com.

About McDonald’s
McDonald’s USA, LLC, is the leading foodservice provider in the United States serving a variety of wholesome foods made from quality ingredients to more than 26 million customers every day. Nearly 90 percent of McDonald’s 14,000 U.S. restaurants are independently owned and operated by local business men and women. Customers can now log online for free at any of the 11,500 participating Wi-Fi enabled McDonald’s U.S. restaurants. For more information, visit www.mcdonalds.com, or follow us on Twitter (@McDonalds) and Facebook (Facebook.com/McDonalds) for updates on our business, promotions and products. © 2012 McDonald’s

About CU Athletics
The University of Colorado is an NCAA Division I institution that competes in the Pac-12 Conference, also known as the Conference of Champions with 451 NCAA titles among its members. Located in Boulder, Colorado, its athletic teams are known as the Buffaloes (Buffs for short), and the school sponsors 17 varsity sports, including women’s lacrosse which will begin in the spring of 2014.  CU has claimed 24 national championships, with 18 of those coming in skiing, the premier winter sport in the state of Colorado.  The Buffaloes have also produced 77 Olympians, five of whom are competing this summer in London, boast five Rhodes Scholars, a Heisman Trophy winner and more than 700 first-team All-America honors in its 122 year history. Buffalo Sports Properties oversees CU Athletics’ corporate partnerships and manages all aspects of the comprehensive rights program including signage, event marketing, radio play-by-play and coaches’ shows, television coaches’ shows and official athletic web site (CUBuffs.com) sponsorships.