Minnesota Vikings Legend Cris Carter Faces-off in Fiscal Scrimmage at Republican...

Minnesota Vikings Legend Cris Carter Faces-off in Fiscal Scrimmage at
Republican National Convention

Visa and NFL Money Management Video Game, Already Distributed Nationally to
Every Public High School in Sixteen States

MINNEAPOLIS, Sept. 2 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Former NFL star and Minnesota
Vikings All-Pro Cris Carter joined the Young Republican National Federation,
the College Republican National Committee, the National Football League (NFL),
PLAYERS INC. and Visa Inc. in an effort to help young adults sharpen their
fiscal skills through an interactive money management video game called
"Financial Football."
Entering its fourth season, "Financial Football" is the centerpiece of Visa's
nationwide education initiative, with the NFL and PLAYERS INC., designed to
help students tackle their financial futures. This computer-based game is
accompanied by a classroom curriculum and can also be downloaded for free on
cell phones. Mobile customers can play the game by texting the word VISA to
24421.
In the Minneapolis Convention Center, Cris Carter rolled up his sleeves and
engaged members in a lively game of "Financial Football." In addition to
playing "Financial Football," Carter also shared his personal experiences on
the importance of money management with students.
"Young people need to know how to make smart money management decisions before
heading off to college and entering the workforce," said Carter. "It takes the
combined efforts of parents, teachers and mentors within the community to give
teenagers a strong background in personal finance."
Last week, Visa held a similar "Financial Football" event at the Democratic
National Convention with young Democrats and former Denver Broncos Wide
Receiver and two-time Super Bowl Champion, Rod Smith.
"For over a decade, Visa's financial education initiatives have helped
millions of people worldwide learn about managing money wisely. We brought
'Financial Football' to Minneapolis to not only help educate young adults who
played the game, but also to continue shining a spotlight on the importance of
financial literacy with the thousands of policymakers attending the Republican
National Convention," said Denise Dunckel, Senior Director, Global Corporate
Relations for Visa Inc. "Our hope is that the next President places a strong
emphasis on helping America's children learn about the critical life skill of
money management."
Demonstrating broad-based support for having financial education begin at home
and extend to the classroom, a study released last year by Visa showed that
91% of consumers surveyed believe all high school students should take a
financial education class before graduating.
"Financial Football" puts students' fiscal knowledge to the test in an online
simulation environment by combining the structure and rules of the NFL with
financial education questions of varying difficulty. Teams score points by
answering various money management questions correctly. Wrong answers and
penalties can cost a team yardage. The team with the highest point total after
four quarters wins the game.
The computer-based "Financial Football" game is accompanied by a classroom
curriculum, which has been distributed for free to every public high school in
sixteen states. Since 2006, Visa has partnered with state government officials
to distribute the game to each public high school in: Arizona, California,
Colorado, Connecticut, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, Nevada, New
Hampshire, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia and
Wisconsin.
The game's online version has been downloaded more than 200,000 times at
www.practicalmoneyskills.com/football. In 2007, "Financial Football" also
became a free, first-of-its-kind cell phone game.
"Financial Football" is part of Practical Money Skills for Life
(www.practicalmoneyskills.com), a free, award-winning, teacher-tested and
teacher-approved financial education program that is available in English,
Spanish and Chinese. The program contains three comprehensive sections,
complete with money management resources and lesson plans tailored for use at
home, in the classroom or at work. It also contains an array of tips to help
prepare for life changing financial events, from planning for a baby to saving
for college and retirement, as well as a number of other budget calculators
and interactive games. Visa also runs What's My Score(www.whatsmyscore.org), a
leading higher education consumer awareness program. The Web site guides
college students through the ABC's of a FICO credit score, from factors that
can lower a score to ways on improving it, at no charge.
About Visa Inc.
Visa Inc. operates the world's largest retail electronic payments network
providing processing services and payment product platforms. This includes
consumer credit, debit, prepaid and commercial payments, which are offered
under the Visa, Visa Electron, Interlink and PLUS brands. Visa enjoys
unsurpassed acceptance around the world, and Visa/PLUS is one of the world's
largest global ATM networks, offering cash access in local currency in more
than 170 countries. For more information, visit www.corporate.visa.com.

SOURCE Visa Inc.

Steve Burke of Visa Inc., +1-703-946-5737