Subway Promises Free Subs For Life In Exchange For An Unlikely Name Change

Since their unveiling in early July, Subway's Deli Heroes sandwiches have been a hit, prompting the brand to announce a new, unheard-of promotion: One Subway super-fan will win the opportunity to eat free sandwiches for life on the somewhat surreal condition that they legally change their first name to "Subway."

According to a press release, "Subway is looking to reward its biggest fan with free subs for life if they legally change their first name to Subway." Fans interested in taking this seemingly absurd deal will have three days, from August 1 to August 3, to visit SubwayNameChange.com and enter to win the contest on the condition that if they are chosen, they will go through with the name change before they can claim their free sandwiches. In addition to a lifetime of free subs, the sandwich chain will provide the money needed to pay the legal fees and other costs associated with the name change as part of the prize.

Subway notes in the release that last year, one fan agreed to get a foot-long tattoo of the Subway Series logo in exchange for free subs for life, so clearly, there is a dedicated fanbase to the brand's sandwiches. It will be interesting to see how many people are willing to change their name for free Subway when the contest gets underway.

This new promotion comes on the heels of a larger rebranding campaign for Subway. Earlier this summer, Subway introduced Deli Heroes to showcase its transition to fresh-sliced meats. The change, which according to CNN saw the chain outfit about 80% of its 20,000 U.S. locations with high-end $6,000 deli meat slicers, is part of a two-year-long rebrand that featured revitalized ingredients in 2021 and introduced its Subway Series lineup in 2022. 

The fast-food sandwich staple had seen sales drop following the rise to popularity of smaller competitors like Jersey Mike's, Jimmy John's, and Firehouse Subs, the conviction of its former spokesman Jared Fogle as a child predator, and controversies around if the brand's tuna really contained tuna — and if the bread was too sugary to qualify as bread. The new Deli Heroes quartet is the next step in Subway's fresh evolution, centered on meats including turkey, roast beef, salami, and ham being sliced daily in stores instead of the previous model of being pre-sliced and shipped to shops from a factory.