The Principal Financial Group Family Fun Fest Hits a Home Run, Nolan Ryan Signs On As National Spokesperson For 2007-09 Tour
Dec. 11, 2006 (Des Moines, Iowa) — The Principal Financial Group® and Entertainment & Sports International (ESI) announce the signing of Nolan Ryan, one of baseball's most celebrated personalities, as national spokesperson for the Principal Financial Group Family Fun Fest. Launched in 2004, the Principal Financial Group Family Fun Fest is the world's largest traveling celebration of baseball which visits more than 50 different minor league ballparks each season and has been attended by close to one million baseball fans.
"The Principal Family Fun Fest is batting a thousand by having Nolan Ryan join the team," said Dan Houston, executive vice president, Retirement and Investor Services, the Principal Financial Group. "With a popular hall of fame pitcher speaking on behalf of this event, the Principal Financial Group will be able to continue to give communities an edge by bringing a major league event to minor league communities."
The Principal Financial Group has extended its exclusive title sponsorship through the 2009 season based on the unprecedented success of the 2004 through 2006 tours. The 2007 tour will begin on April 28 at Florida's Roger Dean Stadium, home of the Jupiter Hammerheads and Palm Beach Cardinals.
"The minor leagues offer fans a great baseball experience," said Nolan Ryan. "From exceptional value to a safe, family environment; fans get to see competitive professional baseball with non-stop entertainment. The Principal Financial Group Family Fun Fest extends that excitement before the game with an event truly unique to minor league ballparks."
Ryan joins the tour with an unrivaled career spanning 27 years, and his 5,714 strikeouts and seven no-hitters lead the record books. He is an eight-time MLB All-Star and was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1999. He also is the owner of two minor league ball clubs, the Triple-A Round Rock Express and Double-A Corpus Christi Hooks, both of which are hosting the Principal Financial Group Family Fun Fest this season.
The Principal Financial Group Family Fun Fest was created and is produced by ESI, a recognized leader in events and promotions for the teams of baseball's minor leagues. Family Fun Fest is a registered trademark of ESI.
For more information about the Principal Financial Group Family Fun Fest, visit www.principal.com/funfest.
About the Principal Financial Group Family Fun Fest
The Principal Financial Group Family Fun Fest is a daylong celebration of baseball, free to all fans. The 2007 tour will visit over 50 ballparks including teams representing 16 different leagues. It includes a traveling minor league baseball museum with special exhibits highlighting artifacts from over 100 years of major league history, and showcases players before they were stars. The event features a fan festival midway with more than 20 baseball-themed attractions, including batting and pitching cages, bungee runs, giant slide, a Rookie Zone, a state of the art video game trailer, and a historic display of 70 years of baseball photographs from the Life Magazine archives.
About Entertainment & Sports International
Entertainment & Sports International (ESI) specializes in the creation and production of distinctive and proprietary sports and entertainment events from offices in New Jersey and Palm Beach Gardens, FL. ESI is a partnership of two experience sports and entertainment executives who have worked with some of the best known entertainment brands of the past two decades. Visit www.esimarketing.com.
2007 Principal Financial Group Family Fun Fest Tour Itinerary by Date
About the Principal Financial Group
The Principal Financial Group® (The Principal®)1 is a leader in offering businesses, individuals and institutional clients a wide range of financial products and services, including retirement and investment services, life and health insurance, and banking through its diverse family of financial services companies and national network of financial professionals. A member of the Fortune 500, the Principal Financial Group has $215.0 billion in assets under management2 and serves some 16.4 million customers worldwide from offices in Asia, Australia, Europe, Latin America and the United States. Principal Financial Group, Inc. is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol PFG. For more information, visit www.principal.com.
1) "The Principal Financial Group" and "The Principal" are registered trademarks of Principal Financial Services, Inc., a member of the Principal Financial Group.
2) As of September 30, 2006.
