Former Olympic Champions Christine Ohuruogu and Darren Campbell as well as World Champion and Olympic gold medal hope Jessica Ennis are to feature in a new national TV commercial for Aviva.

The commercial which launches nationally on Wednesday 27th July, at 18:45, during the ITV News advert break will run for one month and will showcase the best British talent.

This comes alongside the 12^th anniversary since Aviva’s started to sponsor UK athletics. This is the longest-running athletics sponsorship deal in the world.

The advert is also the insurer’s first non-product led TV advertising campaign since Aviva’s rebrand in 2009.

Heather Smith, marketing director, Direct Insurance, Aviva UK said: ‘We are so excited to be showcasing Aviva’s longstanding support for British athletics in our latest TV advertising campaign, celebrating our enduring partnership with UKA since 1999’.
 
She also added  that ‘We truly believe that no-one knows athletics like Aviva, and are delighted to be celebrating this heritage at a great time for British sport’.
 
World Heptathlon Champion Jessica Ennis added: ‘I am really proud to be part of the new TV ad as Aviva has continually helped to develop and promote my sport at every level since the very beginning of my sporting career. It’s good to tell the story behind the big events, we don’t just turn up to a championship event and perform – it’s your personal preparation that counts for everything, as any athlete will tell you’.

‘Aviva has always supported me and my fellow athletes in the GB Team through both the good times and the bad, and ahead of an important time for athletics, including the World Championships in Daegu this year; this advert demonstrates Aviva’s continued commitment to athletics. I look forward to seeing the ad on TV soon’.

Sponsors, rights holders and agencies have been invited to enter their most successful campaigns for the 2011 European Sponsorship Awards.

The 2011 European Sponsorship awards organised by the European Sponsorship Association (ESA), are the only pan-European sponsorship awards that celebrate excellence across all sectors, including sport, culture, entertainment, media, community and corporate responsibility.

For the events sponsors, rights holders and agencies have been invited to enter their campaigns. This year includes two new categories. The new categories relate to rights holders and governing bodies and the second focuses on media sponsorship.

“There is an opportunity for everyone to be involved, no matter what the size of budget,” said European Sponsorship Awards chairman Karen Earl. “We have categories covering Business to Business, Business to Community, Business to Consumer, Business to Employee and the Rights Holder Award – the latter to reflect the success of their sponsor partnerships.”

Earl added: “In addition, there is a multi-national award to celebrate the best campaign that has been activated in a minimum of three different countries, with at least one country being in Europe. Last year MasterCard was our multi-national winner for its outstanding UEFA Champions League sponsorship that reached numerous markets. We also saw a project from Latvia prove that a carefully thought out, creative sponsorship campaign executed on a small budget, can exceed the objectives set.”

Award entries will be judged by an independent panel of European industry experts, and winners will be announced at the Awards Ceremony in Amsterdam on November 22 as part of ESA’s two-day annual conference, Future Sponsorship.

Heather Watson, unhealthy The British Tennis player has agreed a deal to endorse  The equipment provider Dunlop.

The nineteen year old player from Guernsey was brought to the attention of the public and press with recent performances on the circuit.  
She is currently ranked 104^th in the world after impressive performances at the French Open and Wimbledon. These performances into the spotlight have helped her to win this major contract.     

Head of sports marketing for Dunlop Sunny Singh, apoplectic said: “We are thrilled that one of the brightest talents in British tennis has chosen to be with Dunlop. Heather has proven over the last year that she possesses fantastic skill on the court, but also the maturity to withstand the pressures of being in the media limelight. We look forward to helping her in her young career to achieve as much success as possible.”

Row2Recovery,which is  a campaign to raise funds for injured service personnel and their families, has announced that BP has pledged its support for the project by signing on as the first official Premium Partner. The overall aim is to raise $US1.6.

The project’s objective will see a mixed crew of able-bodied and amputee servicemen  achieve the extraordinary and row across the Atlantic in an epic 3,000 mile adventure in December from the Canaries to Barbados.

Peter Mather, head of BP UK said: ‘BP is delighted to be supporting Row2Recovery. It is an inspiring example of the extraordinary impact that can be made through teamwork and dedication. We wish the team every success in their mission to transform the lives of injured British service personnel’.

BP will support the operational aspects of the transatlantic row and BP employees helped the Row2Recovery team reach 1 million metres in 24 hours at the recent Million Metre Row held in Horse Guard’s Parade in London. 

 

The two giants in Serbian soccer have agreed to share a sponsorship deal with a Turkish company. The Acibadem Hospital Groups will provide official healthcare service under the new partnership.

The two clubs, health Partizan Belgrade and Red Star Belgrade will be competing in the Uefa Champions League and Europa League respectively this season as well as challenging for the Jelen Superliga, denture have a dominant share of support amongst Serbian fans.

Yalcin Nak the vice president of the health group signed the deal and confimed that staff and player will have access to first class medical care in Balkan country. 

 Acibadem has a number of other sponsorship deals in sport and is the only healthcare company listed on the Istanbul Stock Exchange. The group operates 16 hospitals and seven medical centres.

McDonald’s have announced plans for their biggest outlet in The world. The outlet will be located in The 2012 Olympic park along side three others.

The Fast food giant  plans to serve 1.75 million meals during the 29 day period of the Olympics and Paralympics.

The official restaurant will be the only retail food brand at the games. They will  feed athletes, media and spectators.

The soon to be biggest McDonald’s outlet in the World will be  a 3,000 square-metre (32,000 square-foot) two-story building in the Olympic Park . The restaurant will provide 1,500 seats.

2000 of their best performing employee will be specially brought in for the Games.  

McDonald’s Olympic sloga will be “McDonald’s Champions of Play for the Olympic Games”. This will be supported by the range of options in their Menu for ‘happy Active Kids’.

International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge enthusiastically backed McDonald’s plans for next year.·

“McDonald’s has been a long-time and valued partner of the Olympic Movement,” he said.

“We appreciate McDonald’s incredible ability to reach millions of fans with innovative, inspiring programmes that connect with the Olympic Spirit.

“We are working together to promote sport and inspire children around the world to lead balanced, active lifestyles.”

UFC’s have announced that the new official sponsor in Canada will be Fast Food Chain Boston Pizza. 

The company is and will maintain to be the official sports bar and pizza of The Ultimate Fighting Championship in the The North American Country. The new deal will extend their contract advancing with a selection of promotions.

UFC events will be shown live in Boston Pizza outlets.

The executive vice president of marketing at Boston Pizza International, Steve Silverstone said “As a brand that focuses on giving our guests more of what they want, we are thrilled to be partnering with UFC Canada to give the many dedicated MMA fans who watch live events at our restaurants the best possible experience,”

He added “The UFC has built an incredible brand with passionate fans and we’re excited to have it associated with Boston Pizza sports bars. Our category exclusivity and partnership with UFC Canada will provide Boston Pizza with unique promotional opportunities, enhanced point-of-sale materials and athlete appearances, which will strengthen our brand as the premier sports destination in Canada,” said Silverstone.    

Tyre manufacturer Bridgestone has admitted it has failed to seal a commercial partnership with Russia’s top football cup competition just days after announcing it had acquired the tournament’s title sponsorship rights.