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Scotiabank to become major sponsor of football in the Americas

A Scotiabank logo is pictured at the company's AGM in Kelowna, British Columbia April 8, 2014. REUTERS/Ben Nelms

TORONTO (Reuters) - Bank of Nova Scotia said on Tuesday it has become the official bank and first official partner of the governing body of football in North America and the Caribbean, a move that adds to the Canadian lender's growing branding efforts in the sports world. As part of its deal with the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football, or CONCACAF, Scotiabank will become the title sponsor of the Gold Cup, the championship for national teams from the United States, Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central America. It will also be the title sponsor for the CONCACAF Champions League and the Caribbean Nations Cup. John Doig, Scotia's chief marketing officer said it is important for Scotiabank to support soccer as the sport is a unifying force through the region. "We want to be engaging our brand with the consumers in the region," Doig said in an interview, noting that Scotiabank has operations in 34 of the 41 CONCACAF countries. Scotiabank said the four-year deal also includes support for a number of youth tournaments. The bank, which already has similar agreements that support cricket in the Caribbean, hockey in Canada and baseball in the Dominican Republic, said it was keen to add soccer to the list. Earlier this year, the bank reached a six-year deal to sponsor a large slice of Canadian media and telecom company Rogers Communications Inc's coverage of the National Hockey League in Canada. Shares in Scotia were flat at C$65.07 on the Toronto Stock Exchange on Tuesday afternoon. (Reporting by Euan Rocha; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn; and Peter Galloway)