Keep on the grass!

Sky+ HD has teamed up with Stoke City FC to offer an innovative and prolific new advertising space.

With sponsors jostling for space on pitch-side hoardings, match-day programmes and TV ad breaks, for the start of the new season, Sky+ HD has teamed up with Stoke City FC to offer an innovative and prolific new advertising space: blades of grass! Last season, Sky Sports HD broadcast over 300 hours' worth of football in high definition. With crisp, clear pictures and vivid colour, every single aspect of the ground can be scrutinised by viewers at home - this even includes the 50 million blades of grass under players' feet. So Sky+ HD is working with Stoke City to brand individual blades of grass on their pitch with sponsors' logos, so the high definition cameras can pick up the intricate detail, providing local advertisers with an innovative way of promoting their brand to viewers at home. Andy Billingham, Stoke City's Head of Sales explained: "We were intrigued when Sky approached us with this unique idea. Now we're in the Premier League we're looking for ways to maximise our advertising and sponsorship, but we never thought of selling space on individual blades of grass! We're already speaking with one sponsor to see if we can move this forward." Sky's Christian Cull commented: "We're always looking for new and creative ways to make the most of our cutting edge technology. From beads of sweat on players' faces to tears of sadness or joy on fans in the crowd, our Sky+ HD cameras pick up every last detail. So why not investigate an opportunity like this with the one thing that's shown the most - the turf!"