NetApp touches down with the San Francisco 49ers

NetApp has become a founding level partner of the San Francisco 49ers professional football team in a multi-year deal and is now its Official Intelligent Data Infrastructure Partner.

NetApp is also the presenting sponsor of the 49ers 2025 NFL Draft and also the Levi’s Stadium Owners Club, located on the east side of the building. It will be renamed to recognize NetApp’s sponsorship. The company will be the presenting sponsor for the 49ers’ strategy, data, and analytics conference, Horizon Summit, returning to Levi’s Stadium in June 2025. 

Costa Kladianos of the 49ers, which is in partnership with NetApp
Costa Kladianos

Costa Kladianos, 49ers EVP and Head of Technology, stated: “When Levi’s Stadium opened in 2014, it was one of the most technologically advanced stadiums in the country. While we have remained diligent in making improvements to the fan experience year over year, NetApp will empower us to make major changes that will bring the building into the forefront of technology-focused sports and entertainment venues.”

NetApp says the two brands will use intelligent data infrastructure to support 49ers business operations throughout the organization, starting with the reimagination of the fan experience at the Levi’s Stadium. The 49ers plan to make major tech enhancements to the venue with the goal of creating “a new seamless and connected fan experience” with improvements to ingress and egress, bathroom and concession wait times, mobile app functionality, and more. This will involve NetApp’s Keystone storage-as-a-service offering.

NetApp CEO George Kurian said: “Intelligent data infrastructure is crucial to the sports fan experience and team performance. Our support of the 49ers’ ambitious goals for making its home stadium the benchmark for excellence in fan experience and team performance demonstrates our strong ties to our San Francisco Bay Area home and our unique capabilities to make data an asset in leading organizations achieving their transformation goals.” 

We understand that the cost to become a 49ers funding-level partner can be significant, and is typically negotiated on a case-by-case basis and not publicly disclosed. Levi Strauss & Co did reveal it is paying $17 million a year for its ten-year stadium naming rights deal.

NetApp is heavily involved in sports sponsorship, having deals with the San Jose Sharks pro ice hockey team, Porsche Motorsport, TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E team, and the Formula 1 Aston Martin Aramco Racing team. Its annual sports sponsorship budget must be significant.