Madison Square Garden Sports (MSGS) – the owner of the titular iconic New York venue, the New York Rangers ice hockey team, and the New York Knicks basketball franchise – has announced a new partnership with plant-based food producer Impossible Foods.
Going forward, Impossible Foods will serve as the official plant-based burger partner of the Rangers, Knicks, and Madison Square Garden (MSG) itself.
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A new Impossible Foods-themed concourse will debut on the sixth floor of the arena, but the firm’s plant-based products will be available at concessions stands and hospitality suites across the 19,812-capacity venue.
This will be accompanied with typical sponsorship inventory, including in-game LED signage presence, and activations on the overhead ‘GardenVision’ screens during regular-season fixtures.
Speaking on the agreement, Doug Jossem, MSG Entertainment executive vice president for global sports and entertainment partnerships, said: “This partnership with Impossible Foods represents another step in diversifying our culinary offerings for guests.
“Adding Impossible Foods’ celebrated plant-based options reflects our commitment to meeting evolving dietary preferences while maintaining the standards our fans expect when they come to events at The Garden.”
The Knicks have three games remaining of the NBA regular season, all of which are home fixtures, having already secured a post-season playoff berth.
Meanwhile, the Rangers also have three regular-season games left, all away games, but the team will not advance to the playoffs, as they currently sit at the bottom of the Eastern Conference Metropolitan Division.
This new partnership comes as MSGS continues to explore a possible spin-off that would separate the Knicks and the Rangers, creating two publicly traded companies.
The move was unanimously approved by the MSG Sports board of directors back in February.
The proposed spin-off would see the creation of the New York Knicks company and include the NBA franchise and the Westchester Knicks, the team’s NBA G League affiliate.
The New York Rangers company will include the Rangers and the Hartford Wolf Pack, a minor-league hockey team in the AHL, and the top affiliate team for the Rangers.
Jim Dolan, MSG Sports executive chairman and chief executive, said: “Both the Knicks and Rangers are premier teams in their respective leagues, with storied histories and large and passionate fan bases. We believe this proposed transaction would provide each company with enhanced strategic flexibility, its own defined business focus, and clear characteristics for investors.”
