When America First Credit Union finds something—or someone—that works, it tends to stick with it.
In the Utah-based credit union’s 83-year history, it’s had only five presidents.
And after a couple of years, a sponsorship agreement with the NFL’s Las Vegas Raiders also falls into the category of things that are working, credit union officials said.
America First offers the exclusive Raiders debit card to its customers and sponsors an annual contest for small businesses to win free Raiders-related advertising.
With its First Downs for the Hometown sponsorship, America First also donates $100 to the Raiders Foundation for each first down the team makes at Allegiant Stadium. That money will eventually be filtered to charitable organizations in Southern Nevada.
The partnership between the financial institution and the team is rooted in an exploratory call made in 2017, after it was announced that the then-Oakland Raiders would move to Southern Nevada.
“The call was to see if there would be an appetite for us to eventually have a conversation about a partnership,” said Brett Greenwell, vice president of member and partner relations at America First.
There was an appetite.
Not long before the team opened its first season in Las Vegas in 2020, the two sides had the framework for a deal, though some things had to be adjusted on the fly due to the coronavirus pandemic.
It wasn’t the credit union’s first sponsorship deal with a Las Vegas sports team.
It has also partnered with the Vegas Golden Knights to honor teachers in the Clark County School District through a program called Game Changer.
The first sponsorship deal America First made after it moved into the Las Vegas market in 2009 was with UNLV.
Earlier this year, the credit union announced a sports sponsorship deal with the University of Arizona and has agreements with the NBA’s Utah Jazz and pro soccer’s Real Salt Lake club, which plays home games on America First Field.
“These partnerships kind of help people know who we are, what we do,” Greenwell said. “Working with these great partners can give us a platform to do things in the community that move the needle.”
America First president Thayne Shaffer said the deal with the Raiders offered a great way for the credit union to get involved in the Southern Nevada community.
“Partnering with the Las Vegas Raiders organization allows us to better amplify our ability to support small businesses, as well as our charitable efforts with schools, shelters and food pantries within the community,” Shaffer said.
According to one Raiders official, the desire to better the greater Las Vegas community is a common denominator for the two organizations.
“We value our business relationship, as well as our shared commitment to making a positive impact in our community,” said Christian Howard, vice president of corporate partnerships for the Raiders.
Howard singled out the credit union’s Small Business Showcase as an example of how a program can make a difference with growing companies.
In 2021, the owner of a small gift basket business won the showcase.
This year, a woman-owned construction company, RGD Construction, in the Las Vegas Valley received the yearlong sponsorship prize.
Howard said the showcase helps “strengthen and shed light on how essential small businesses are to our local community.”
America First has 13 locations in the Las Vegas Valley.
If Las Vegas attracts more pro sports franchises—the possibility of the city getting teams in the NBA, Major League Baseball and Major League Soccer has been rumored—America First could have more sponsorship deals to make in the coming years.
“Any of those are great opportunities that could be possible in the future,” Greenwell said. “In terms of what happened with the Raiders, they wanted one exclusive credit union, and we wanted to be able to offer the debit card. It was great that it all worked out.”