TfL sells sponsorship rights for entire Tube line in multi-million pound branding deal

 Transport for London (TfL) is selling the rights to an entire London Underground line in a bid to raise millions.

In a post on the social media platform LinkedIn, TfL announced it was offering “exclusive sponsorship” of the Waterloo and City line, which connects Bank and Waterloo stations.

The two-stop, three-minute shuttle service, which is only open on weekdays, is London’s least-used tube line, but still ferries around 15 million people each year.

TfL said the opportunity to sponsor the line would not involve renaming it but would “go far beyond a typical media opportunity”.

They said the sponsorship would include “full-line branding, from moquette seat fabric and signage to maps and experiential spaces”.

“Millions of professionals and decision-makers travel this route every year,” the advert read. “Now, your brand can own the journey.”

While this would be the first time an entire Tube line has been offered for sponsorship, several stations have been sponsored.

Southgate station was temporarily renamed “Gareth Southgate” Tube station by Visa in honour of the then-England manager after the national team made the semi-final of the 2018 World Cup.

The two-day takeover of the final stop on the Piccadilly line generated £80,000 for TfL. The sponsorship included branded roundels, themed Tannoy announcements, digital screen messages and flash mobs.

A few years later, during London Fashion Week in October 2023, Bond Street was briefly renamed “Burberry Street”.

The name change led to 57 complaints to TfL as passengers complained about becoming confused by the mock Tube signs.

Complaints were also made last year when Samsung renamed Old Street to “Fold Street” to promote their new “Fold and Flip” smartphone, generating £250,000 for TfL.

The only time that a public transport line in London has been completely sponsored is the £2.1 million five-year IFS Cloud sponsorship of the cable car, which crosses the Thames between the Royal Docks and North Greenwich.

The Waterloo and City line, however, boasts 10 times the number of annual users.