REPORT TO COUNCIL
SUBJECT
Title
Action on the Proposed Agreement with OUTFRONT Media LLC to Assist in the Sale of Advertising Space on City-Owned and City-Controlled Assets in Preparation for 2026 Major Events
Report
BACKGROUND
Levi’s® Stadium (“Stadium”), home to the San Francisco 49ers and a premier venue for world-class sports, entertainment, and community events, has been selected to host two globally significant events in 2026 (“2026 Events”). On February 8, 2026, the Stadium is scheduled to host Super Bowl LX, marking its second time hosting the NFL’s championship game, following Super Bowl 50 in 2016. Between June 13 and July 1 of 2026, the Stadium will also serve as an official venue for the FIFA World Cup, hosting six matches including five group-stage contests and one “Round of 32” single-elimination match.
These events will bring unprecedented national and international attention to Santa Clara. Attendance is expected to include hundreds of thousands of visitors over the course of each event period, along with extensive broadcast coverage, significant economic activity, and an opportunity for the City to place itself front and center on the global stage. This exposure provides a powerful platform to attract future investment, tourism, and talent. At the same time, the City can use these events to celebrate and strengthen its local community.
City Asset Marketing Opportunities
During strategic planning and preparation for Super Bowl LX and FIFA World Cup 2026, staff identified an opportunity to leverage the potential value of advertising space on certain assets that are City-owned and City-controlled (“Assets”) located near the stadium. These Assets, which may include parking lots, buildings, and other forms of municipal infrastructure, provide an ideal platform for sponsors to display their products and services in the form of supergraphics, temporary free-standing LED displays, static vinyl displays, building wraps, murals, and other out-of-home advertisements. Collectively, these advertisements are referred to as “Activations.”
Many of these Assets hold potential for commercial sponsorship and marketing campaigns associated with the 2026 events. Recognizing this, staff developed a structured, centralized approach to inventory, value, and manage the temporary commercial use of City Assets for sponsorship purposes. This planning effort was incorporated into key event agreements to ensure alignment with FIFA, the NFL, and other partners.
Recognition of City Asset Marketing Opportunities in Key Agreements
Both FIFA and the NFL have explicitly acknowledged the City’s authority to leverage City-controlled Assets for sponsorship opportunities. The FIFA World Cup Assignment and Assumption Agreement, for example, specifically references the City’s development of City Asset Marketing opportunities. Section 5.11 of that agreement (which can be found on the City’s website at: <https://www.santaclaraca.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/87806/638912894672630000>) states that the City is in the process of developing a list of City-owned or controlled Assets near the Stadium that may have value as staging sites for World Cup event activities or as platforms for advertising or marketing for FIFA and its commercial affiliates and partners. The agreement also requires the Bay Area Host Committee (BAHC) and Stadium Manager to cooperate with the City by providing input and coordinating with FIFA to facilitate City presentations for potential sponsorship activations. This section makes clear that the City will retain sole responsibility for negotiating the terms of use for City Assets with FIFA and that all activities must comply with the FIFA requirements under the Stadium Agreement, applicable laws, including ambush marketing laws, copyright and trademark protections, and existing contractual provisions binding on the City.
Similarly, the draft Super Bowl LX League Event Agreement, presented to the City Council on August 26, 2025, references the “Joint Marketing of City Assets” in Section 6.8. This section acknowledges that the City is finalizing an agreement with a third-party vendor for the marketing of certain City Assets and confirms that the City’s efforts must comply with existing agreements and any adopted Special Event Zone ordinance. The section also establishes that the BAHC and Stadium Company will cooperate with the City’s marketing efforts to the extent consistent with these requirements.
These provisions establish that the BAHC and the 49ers will cooperate with the City to monetize its Assets for the 2026 Events, ensuring clear coordination and compliance with FIFA and the NFL.
Need for Specialized Expertise
To ensure the City received the highest benefit for the sale of Activations on Assets during the 2026 Events, staff determined that specialized experience in Asset valuation and marketing, sales management, permit navigation, and general oversight of activation logistics was needed. Through leveraging outside expertise, staff can remain focused on core municipal responsibilities while ensuring professional marketing and compliance standards are applied.
OUTFRONT Media LLC (OUTFRONT) was selected to provide these services following a competitive procurement process. OUTFRONT has extensive experience managing sponsorship programs and large-scale advertising for major events, including work with municipalities and sports venues. Under the proposed agreement, OUTFRONT will operate under a performance-based compensation model. The City and OUTFRONT will each receive 50 percent of net revenue from approved sponsorship Activations. Net revenue is defined as the total revenue received from a sponsorship agreement minus out-of-pocket costs associated with implementing the sponsorship agreements by way of site preparation, maintenance, production, installation, removal and any third-party pass-through fees, costs, or expenses incurred for implementation.
DISCUSSION
Pursuant to City Code Section 2.105.140(c), a formal Request for Proposals (RFP) was conducted, with the award recommendation based on “best value.” The RFP sought firms to assist the City with the marketing, sale, and installation of Activations on Assets during the 2026 Events. The solicitation was publicly advertised on the City’s e-procurement system. Three proposals were received from the following firms:
• Canyon Oaks
• OUTFRONT Media, LLC
• Tandem Partnerships
A three-member evaluation panel consisting of representatives from Parks and Recreation, the City Manager’s Office, and an external evaluator with municipal experience in procurement, independently evaluated the proposals against the criteria and weights published in the RFP, including experience, project approach, and fee structure.
Proposers were invited to participate in oral presentations to introduce key personnel, elaborate on their experience providing similar services for large events, provide additional detail regarding the level of collaboration that would be required from the City, and explain the basis for their cost proposal. Following the conclusion of the evaluation, the panel recommended OUTFRONT as the best value proposal based on receiving the highest score.
OUTFRONT demonstrated extensive experience in the marketing, sale, and installation of large-scale advertising for major events, including experience working with other municipalities and other large-scale sports venues. The firm highlighted the City’s potential to generate significant revenue from its Assets and present a partnership model designed to maximize benefits to the City.
Agreement with OUTFRONT
Approval of the proposed agreement will enable OUTFRONT to serve as the City’s primary marketing partner during the 2026 Events, providing services for each Asset in three phases.
Phase 1 - Valuation & Marketing Phase
In Phase 1, OUTFRONT will conduct an initial kickoff meeting with City staff to establish goals, roles, and timelines. A preliminary list of potential Assets will be established, for which OUTFRONT will assess the marketability and installation logistics of the space and will identify any special restrictions, permits, or security requirements that the specified Asset may pose. (A preliminary list of assets has already been approved.) The final list of potential Assets to be approved for marketing to target sponsors will be presented to the City Manager or designee for review and approval prior to proceeding to the next phase of services. Additionally, Phase 1 services will be repeated throughout the term of the Agreement as additional potential Assets are identified.
Phase 2 - Sales and Sponsorship Agreements
Upon approval by the City to proceed with marketing to approved target sponsors, OUTFRONT will prepare marketing materials, to include potential Activation designs and estimated revenue, for review and approval by the City Manager or designee. Upon approval, OUTFRONT will lead negotiations with interested sponsors and enter into Sponsorship Agreements for each successful sale. The Sponsorship Agreements are executed directly between OUTFRONT and the sponsor to establish the compensation terms, design, and installation of Activations. To ensure the maximum protection to the City, Sponsorship Agreements must name the City as a third-party beneficiary and grant the City sole discretion to terminate sponsorships without refund if needed to comply with other agreements or protect the public interest. Additionally, Sponsorship Agreements do not allow sponsors to transfer or assign Asset space without written City consent, and each sponsorship agreement must include insurance, indemnification, and payment terms that are acceptable to the City.
Phase 3 - Installation & Removal
Once a Sponsorship Agreement is established, Phase 3 begins, consisting of installation and removal of the Activations. This phase requires OUTFRONT to enter into a License Agreement with the City for the purpose of accessing the Asset and facilitating the placement of the Activation. The agreement requires that OUTFRONT be responsible for obtaining all permits, paying required fees, and coordinating all installation logistics with City departments and sponsors. Additionally, the agreement requires that all Activations be installed using materials and methods that do not cause permanent damage to City Assets or interfere with their intended use and that all Assets are returned to pre-activation condition after removal.
Compensation
OUTFRONT’s services will be provided at no cost to the City, as their compensation comes through the revenue generated from the sale of Activations.
The City and OUTFRONT agreed to an equal 50/50 split of all net revenue received. Based on initial research, OUTFRONT projects that the City’s share of the net revenue could range from $500,000 to $1,500,000, depending on the number, type, and scale of Activations that are ultimately sold and placed on Assets.
For the purposes of the agreement, net revenue is defined as the total revenue remaining from the sale of Activations after deduction of out-of-pocket costs, including production, installation, removal, and other third-party pass-through fees.
Additionally, OUTFRONT offered to provide up to $100,000 in advertising space on their proprietary Bay Area billboards at no additional cost to the City. The billboards would provide additional opportunity to promote City initiatives, community events, and public safety information during the 2026 Events.
Oversight and Controls
The City worked diligently to include safeguards in the agreement to ensure that Activations align with City policies and legal obligations. Such safeguards include the requirement that the City provide prior written approval of all target Assets, marketing materials, and target sponsors before OUTFRONT can proceed with any actions relating to the marketing, sale or installation of Assets. Additionally, OUTFRONT is responsible for ensuring that no proposed sale or Activation conflicts with any existing City agreements, such as the Stadium Ground Lease Agreement and FIFA and NFL event agreements, or with any current or proposed ordinances, such as the Special Event Zone Ordinance currently in development. While OUTFRONT bears the responsibility of reviewing all relevant agreements, ordinances, and laws for conflict, the City has also established an internal review process that ends when final written approval to proceed is provided by the City Manager or designee.
Additionally, sponsorship content will be strictly controlled. City Assets will function as a nonpublic forum. The proposed agreement prohibits OUTFRONT from considering Activations that include obscenity, pornography, incitement to imminent lawless action, speech presenting a grave and imminent threat, fighting words, material promoting drugs, tobacco, gambling, oil/gas, adult entertainment, fraudulent material, true threats, defamatory, libelous or slanderous material, solicitations to commit criminal conduct, political campaign speech, or religious speech that advocates or opposes a religion or religious belief.
Regular updates will be provided to the City Council as the program progresses and prior to the installation of major activations.
COORDINATION
This report was coordinated between the Offices of the City Manager/Executive Director and City Attorney/Stadium Authority Counsel.
PUBLIC CONTACT
Public contact was made by posting the Council agenda on the City’s official notice bulletin board outside City Hall Council Chambers. A complete agenda packet is available on the City’s website and in the City Clerk’s Office at least 72 hours prior to a Regular Meeting and 24 hours prior to a Special Meeting. A hard copy of any agenda report may be requested by contacting the City Clerk’s Office at (408) 615-2220, email clerk@santaclaraca.gov or at the public information desk at any City of Santa Clara public library.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
The action being considered does not constitute a “project” within the meaning of the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines section 15378(a) as it has no potential for resulting in either a direct physical change in the environment, or a reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment.
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no direct impact to the City’s operating budget or need for upfront appropriations. The agreement is entirely performance-based, with all costs for production, installation, permitting, and insurance borne by OUTFRONT and reimbursed only from gross receipts prior to revenue-sharing.
RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
1. Approve and authorize the City Manager or their designee to execute the Agreement with OUTFRONT Media LLC to assist in the sale of advertising space on City-owned and City-controlled Assets in preparation for 2026 Events, with compensation based on a 50/50 split of net revenues and other terms as presented, in a final form approved by the City Attorney; and
2. Authorize the City Manager or their designee to negotiate and execute amendments as needed to (1) expand the scope of services to include additional activation types for the 2026 Events at no additional cost to the City, (2) extend the term as-needed to allow the completion of services, and (3) make de minimis changes, all subject to the same compensation terms and review and approval as to form by the City Attorney.
Staff
Reviewed by: Chuck Baker, Assistant City Manager
Approved by: Jovan D. Grogan, City Manager/Executive Director
ATTACHMENTS
1. Agreement with OUTFRONT Media LLC