10 February 2006
The Football Association has selected Action Images, the specialist sports photography agency, as its official photography partner in a new three year deal.Action Images, wholly acquired by Reuters in September 2005, was appointed by The FA following a competitive tender process involving a number of high-profile photography agencies.
Under the terms of the agreement, Action Images will exclusively manage The FA's photo library and assignment-based commissions covering all aspects of The FA's work within football. Further, the agency will be commissioned by The FA to undertake photography assignments at all England football team matches at every level.
Additionally, Action Images will manage the editorial and commercial sales of all photography for The FA, using its specialist knowledge in the sports marketplace. This service is further strengthened by the international sales and support infrastructure at its disposal since its recent acquisition by Reuters.
The Association's photo library contains over 200,000 images including many never seen before pictures. Together with Action Images own archives, the combined collection will make it the first choice for anyone looking for the very best in English football photography.
Action Images is a recognised market leader in sports photography. Its clients include major sports clubs and governing bodies, international media publishers and sponsors. It has a team of photographers working on editorial and commercial assignments, and an archive of more than 7 million sports images.
Jonathan Hill, Commercial Director, at The Football Association, said,
"This is an important deal for The Football Association and will take us to the next stage of our photographic development. Not only does this ensure that we have the best photographic coverage for all our events across the wide range of work that the organisation undertakes, it also ensures that we now have a pro-active sales force for our commercial and editorial imagery. With such a strong reputation in sports photography, we are delighted to be working with Action Images and Reuters."
Monique Villa, Reuters Global Head of News and Pictures and Chairman of Action Images, said,
"England is one of the most popular and closely followed football teams in the world generating huge demand for photography amongst fans and sponsors alike. The FA's decision to choose Action Images to shoot and distribute these images is a major ndorsement of our strength in this marketplace. We really are creating a new and competitive alternative in sports photography."