18(a) Describe the mission/purpose of your proposed gTLD

Prototypical answer:

Soccer United Marketing, LLC (“SUM”)ʹs mission is to establish .soccer as a safe and reliable online namespace that contributes to the sport’s continued growth and development.

SUM envisions that the .soccer TLD will provide numerous benefits to soccer fans and other stakeholders of the sport who increasingly utilize the Internet through desktop and mobile devices to access, disseminate, promote or sell soccer-related information products and services. .soccer domain names will foster a safer, authentic and more intuitive online experience for registrants and end-users alike.

SUM expects to leverage the .soccer TLD as a resource for continuing to revitalize and advance soccer in North America and to further connect the North American brand to the rest of the world. Dedicating an online namespace to soccer will elevate its global accessibility, recognition and utility for a diverse range of soccer audiences and stakeholders across geographic boundaries and cultures.

In recognition of the growing number of Hispanic- players and fans of the sport throughout North America, SUM has elected to support the registration of Spanish-language internationalized domain names (IDN) and will expand our IDN model over time in support of additional languages and in support of the continued growth and diversity of the sport.

SUM has carefully acknowledged the increasing consumer reliance on the Internet as a convenient resource for comparison shopping and purchasing sports merchandise, apparel and other accessories. According to a 2011 PwC report on multi-channel shopping behavior, 60% of consumers worldwide perform research online when buying clothing and footwear, and 71% of consumers in the US use the Internet to purchase these items.

To ensure that soccer fans and end-users of the .soccer TLD are afforded a safe and reliable experience when utilizing .soccer domains, we will actively monitor the entire namespace for malicious behaviors such as phishing scams, pharming, spam, child pornography, the distribution of malware and others which threaten consumer safety and privacy.

Appreciating the important contributions that merchandisers and licensees make to soccer’s growth and development, numerous safeguards and risk mitigation procedures will be applied and enforced at the registry level without solely relying on registrars to enforce our policies for acceptable use in the .soccer TLD. Rights protection mechanisms including sunrise trademark claims services, uniform rapid suspension and rapid takedown procedures will be a core focus of our registry operations and shall serve to reinforce our enterprise commitment to mitigating risks of fraud and abuse for all soccer stakeholders and users of the .soccer TLD.

Founded in 2002, SUM is the preeminent soccer business company in North America. SUM holds the exclusive rights to the most important soccer properties in the region, including: all commercial rights to Major League Soccer; the United States Soccer Federation; promotional and marketing rights to Mexican National Team in the United States; the CONCACAF Gold Cup™ and CONCACAF Champions League; and World Football Challenge. SUM also manages promotional and marketing rights in the United States for Mexico’s most popular sports team, Club Deportivo Guadalajara (Chivas).

SUM orchestrates and manages numerous community outreach, volunteer, education and awareness programs throughout communities in the U.S. and Canada. SUM’s grassroots partnerships include the American Youth Soccer Organization, US Club Soccer, US Youth Soccer, and the National Soccer Coaches Association of America. In early 2009, SUM announced the creation of the SUM Digital Network (now MLS Digital Properties), the only online and mobile soccer advertising network of its kind, covering all facets of the sport in the U.S., and which allows advertisers to reach millions of soccer fans via online advertising and sponsorships campaigns.

SUM is uniquely and favorably positioned to operate the .soccer top-level domain registry. SUM will leverage the strength of all of our properties and unparalleled connectivity to millions of soccer fans and industry stakeholders throughout the U.S., North America and worldwide to ensure the growth and success of the .soccer TLD.

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