The International Olympic Committee is planning to add a new sponsor in 2013 to replace computer manufacturer Acer, taking advantage of a favourable climate created by the London 2012 Olympics, the IOC’s marketing chief said.
“The London 2012 Games were an absolute great success both for organisers and for the sponsors and it makes it easier to talk to companies after London,” Heiberg, head of the IOC’s marketing commission, told Reuters in an interview on Wednesday.
Despite the economic downturn, London managed to balance its books with sponsorship deals and record revenues from ticket sales, Games organisers said in November. Heiberg said the new sponsor would not necessarily have to be a computer company and instead reflect the changing electronics trends.
“We have plans and we are looking at that (computing) category and I hope to see the deal within the year. There are some possibilities with PC producers or some other companies to expand the category a little bit,” he said. “There are developments in this technical category. You have producers of TVs, PCs and other IT gadgets. There is such a revolution here.” The new sponsor will push the IOC’s top sponsor programme revenues for the period 2013-2016 above the $1 billion (624.06 million pounds) mark for the first time. In comparison, the same programme was worth $663 million for the period 2001-4. The organisation has already secured more than $720 million from sponsors for the 2017-2020 quadrennium from just seven companies.
BILLION DOLLARS: “Yes, we are on track for that (one billion dollar) target,” Heiberg said, adding they were also looking to add one more company apart from the electronics partner. “We have had some talks with possible newcomers and if we find the right company it could start immediately. We are looking at categories for this.” He did not say what category would accommodate another sponsor. The IOC currently has 10 top sponsors signed up to the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics, including technology firms Samsung and Panasonic, and has set a maximum limit of 12 sponsors.
