Teeling Whiskey extends College Football Classic partnership

Teeling Whiskey has extended its partnership with the Aer Lingus College Football Classic through to 2028, giving the Dublin distillery continued visibility at an event whose organisers estimate the wider five-game series is worth €413 million to the Irish economy. The extension takes Teeling beyond its fourth consecutive year as Official Irish Whiskey Partner and coincides with the launch of Phoenix Twist, the brand's first ready-to-drink canned cocktail, at this year's game between TCU and the University of North Carolina at the Aviva Stadium on August 29.

Teeling Whiskey operates Ireland's first new Dublin distillery in more than 125 years, founded in 2012 by brothers Jack and Stephen Teeling and based at Newmarket Square since 2015. Global spirits group Bacardi Limited completed full acquisition of the company in 2026, having first taken a stake in 2017.

The Aer Lingus College Football Classic is an annual American football fixture staged at Dublin's Aviva Stadium, now in its fifth consecutive year as a Week Zero fixture, with this year's game expected to draw around 14,000 travelling US supporters. Its commercial partner roster spans tourism, aviation, financial and professional services and consumer brands, including Aer Lingus, Fáilte Ireland, Tourism Ireland and Dublin City Council.

The extension illustrates a sponsorship built around far more than matchday branding: Teeling's activation now spans a week-long TeelGate programme across multiple Dublin venues, distillery events and food and drink collaborations rather than a single day of stadium exposure.

Teeling master distiller and blender Alex Chasko said the brand was delighted to extend the partnership through 2028 and continue welcoming fans from around the world to experience the Spirit of Dublin.

College Football Classic commercial director Brendan Meehan said the relationship had developed substantially over its first three years, describing Teeling as having become an integral part of the event alongside title partner Aer Lingus.

The renewal is notable because 2026 was originally the final fixture of the initial five-game series before an extension into 2027; Teeling's commitment through 2028 signals that the tourism and activation value generated around the event, rather than the game alone, is translating into durable multi-year sponsorship relationships for the sector.

Source: Sport for Business