Coca-Cola Expands Deal With McLaren Racing

With the new Formula 1 season getting underway last Saturday, McLaren Racing and The Coca-Cola Company signed a 2019 Formula 1 partnership, following a successful 2018 pilot roll-out at the US, Mexican, Brazilian and Abu Dhabi Grands Prix.

As part of the deal, Coca-Cola will develop consumer events, activities at the points of sale, online promotions, and communication.

Zak Brown, Chief Executive Officer, McLaren Racing, said: “I’m proud that Coca-Cola, one of the most recognised consumer brands and supporters of sports fans in the world, has chosen to extend its partnership with our Formula 1 team.”

“There was a positive reaction to our 2018 debut as partners on the Formula 1 track and I’m looking forward to us exploring the full potential of this partnership over the coming season.”

Ricardo Fort, Vice President, Sports & Entertainment Partnerships, Coca-Cola, said: “We are excited to extend and expand our relationship with McLaren for the 2019 racing season. Sponsoring McLaren will allow us to create unique consumer experiences around the world.”

Photo above shows McLaren drivers Lando Norris (left) and Carlos Sainz.

 

DAZN Will Start Showing Advertising

Sports streaming company DAZN will start running advertisements some time this year. Until now, DAZN has been ad-free.

During 2019, DAZN will introduce ads from Volkswagen and brewery Krombacher, as well as two betting operators, a unit of Malta’s Tipico Group and bwin Interactive Gaming.

DAZN operates live and on-demand streaming content in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, Spain, Japan, Canada and the USA and plans to launch soon in Brazil.

DAZN parent Perform Group is also re-branding itself as DAZN Media, it said on Wednesday.

Commenting on the advertising move, Stefano D’Anna, Perform Managing Director worldwide Sales, stated: “DAZN has set out to change the way the world sees sport and we now feel that we are in a position to change the way brands engage with sports fans,”

DAZN has, meanwhile, joined forces with media brand Golden Boy to launch a monthly boxing series.

The series debuts on Thursday, March 21, 2019 at Avalon Hollywood and consists of a three-hour program including a two-hour block of live fights followed by a one-hour studio show.

The studio show will feature renowned writers from Ring Magazine as they provide in-depth analysis and previews from boxing events around the globe. The series will be distributed to regional cable channels throughout the U.S. as well as across the globe on international TV stations and networks.

Former champion Oscar De La Hoya, Chairman and CEO of Golden Boy said: “This Golden Boy DAZN series reinforces our commitment to making fighting entertainment more accessible and affordable to the masses. We’re proud to deliver boxing fans great live fights along with the new Ring Report, a weekly studio show covering the world of boxing with an innovative social media twist and content from top boxing bloggers in the business.”

 

Eleven Sports To Unveil Streaming Service In Japan

Eleven Sports is set to launch its streaming service in Japan on Saturday (March 16).

The new service will stream live action from the local Eastern and Western Leagues of the NPB Farm Leagues, Japan’s minor league baseball competitions.

The action will be available for free via PC and smartphones at elevensports.jp. Eleven Sports will further produce digital content to provide improved coverage of the NPB Farm Leagues. This will include comprehensive highlights, match reports and the latest news related to the Eastern and Western Leagues.

Suhyeon Cho, Managing Director, Eleven Sports in Japan, said: “Baseball is hugely popular in Japan and we are very excited to be bringing unprecedented coverage of the NPB Farm Leagues to fans across the country for free. Some games from the league have been broadcast previously, but Eleven Sports will break new ground by streaming such a large volume of matches at a level never seen before.”

“We are looking forward to working with the teams to grow the exposure of the NPB Farm leagues locally. We are also aiming to add further content to our service as we aim to build a compelling ad-funded model that serves local fans with local sport.”

Anouk Mertens, Chief Operating Officer, Eleven Sports Group, said: “The launch of Eleven Sports in Japan marks the evolution of our digital strategy as we continue to explore new ways to make top quality sport accessible, and in this case, free for fans.”

“This differs from the premium model that has been highly successful for Eleven Sports in several markets globally, but we are very confident that this innovative digital approach will be very appealing for fans and for commercial partners.”

 

NBA Will Expand Apparel Offer In India

The National Basketball Association (NBA) has agreed a merchandising partnership with Mumbai-based apparel company Suditi Industries in India.

As part of the deal, a range of NBA fanwear apparel will be launched in India, including a mix of youth and adult products from all 30 NBA teams.

During the fourth quarter of 2018, Suditi Industries reached a five-year licensing agreement with NBA for the right to use NBA marks on the garments manufactured by the company.

With the new agreement, Suditi’s NBA fanwear apparel will be available in department stores nationwide including Shoppers Stop, Central, Lifestyle & Brand Factory Pan-India, and through e-commerce sites Jabong – operator of NBAStore.in, the NBA’s official online store in India – and Myntra.

Pawan Agarwal, Chairman & Managing Director, Suditi Industries Ltd., said: “The NBA is one of the most prestigious sports organisations globally and it’s an exciting opportunity for us to partner with them and bring exclusive merchandise to fans in India. Our goal is to fully penetrate the Indian market and to make NBA fanwear apparel more widely available for fans across the country.”

Siddharth Chury, NBA India Associate Vice President of Global Partnerships, said: “As our fanbase continues to grow exponentially, we have also seen a rising demand for NBA merchandise beyond our core on-court products from Nike and Spalding. We are excited to partner with Suditi Industries, a leading expert in the licensing space, to expand the range of NBA products available to fans.”

 

ICC Signs Up GoDaddy For Cricket World Cup

ICC has named GoDaddy as an official sponsor of the Men’s Cricket World Cup 2019 to create awareness among cricket enthusiasts about the benefits of getting online.

The web hosting company will aim to drive awareness, amongst tournament viewers and cricket enthusiasts, about the benefits for small business owners and entrepreneurs of creating a powerful online identity to help their ventures grow.

The 12th edition of the ICC Cricket World Cup takes place in England and Wales from May 30 to July 14.

Campbell Jamieson, General Manager, Commercial at the International Cricket Council, said: “We are excited to partner with GoDaddy for the Cricket World Cup 2019. GoDaddy has, for a long time, been a formidable supporter of sport in India and around the world and has successfully leveraged the influence of sports to empower and inspire entrepreneurs.”

“Our partnership with GoDaddy connects their entrepreneurial zeal with the year’s biggest sporting extravaganza, which I know will be a winning combination.”

Nikhil Arora, Managing Director and Vice President, GoDaddy India, said: “The Cricket World Cup tournament is a platform that offers a convergence of players, fans and communities. It is one of the biggest global phenomena, bringing people together across the globe, and is a perfect place for us to create awareness about the ease and affordability of GoDaddy’s online product and service offerings.”

“We aim to use our partnership with ICC to tap cricket enthusiasts from all over the world, educating them about the benefits of digital adoption.”

He added, “Cricket in India is a favourite sport. It is viewed in every nook and corner of our country, giving us an opportunity to reach our audiences, including in the Tier II & III markets, helping entrepreneurs and small business owners bring their ideas to life online.”

 

Glenn McGrath Joins Forces With ThinkMarkets

Former Australian fast bowler Glenn McGrath has joined forces with online financial trading broker ThinkMarkets to promote sport among disadvantaged young people.

As part of the Think 2020 programme, McGrath will meet young people from Sydney and London to inspire them to pay attention to their physical and financial health.

He will further interact with young women about financial services.

Glenn McGrath said: “Partnering with ThinkMarkets is a no-brainer for me – they want to help young people and provide opportunities to those who may not otherwise have them, and I am excited to get going.

“I’ll be in England later this year for The Ashes and hope that the excitement prompted by a fantastic year of cricket will lead to more women getting involved in the sport.The message I give my children is to make the most of every opportunity and never think something can’t be done, just because it isn’t the conventional route. If I’d listened to convention, I may never have become an international cricketer!”

Nauman Anees, Co-founder of ThinkMarkets, added: “There are so many synergies between Glenn’s approach to life and how we work at ThinkMarkets. A single-minded focus, a passion for being successful and leading your team by example all come to mind, but what really excites me about working with Glenn is his passion for helping young people and giving something back after such an incredible career.

“We’re pushing the boundaries to make it more welcoming for women to be involved in traditional male-dominated roles like trading.”

 

FINA Lands Chinese Water Brand As Global Sponsor

Chinese bottled water supplier NongFu Spring has become a global sponsor of the International Swimming Federation (FINA) in an agreement steered to conclusion by China Sports Media (CSM).

FINA and the brand have signed a four-year deal running until 2022, covering major FINA events.

NongFu Spring will support two editions of the FINA World Championships in 2019 and 2021, as well as two editions of the FINA World Swimming Championships (25m) in 2020 and 2022.

The sponsorship also covers four editions of the Diving World Series and four editions of the Swimming World Cup from 2019 to 2022.

Last year, CSM brought three regional sponsors on board for the Portuguese national football team and one for Argentina’s national team.

It also closed two sponsorship agreements currently ongoing for the China Super League and the three most recent sponsorship deals signed for M23 boxing super star Xu Can, who won the WBA featherweight title last month.

 

Eurosport Unveils Brand Identity For Tokyo 2020

Eurosport has unveiled its new brand identity for Tokyo 2020 based on Manga, a unique style of Japanese comic book aimed at both adults and children.

The logo unites the Eurosport logo, Olympic rings and Manga-influenced Tokyo 2020 typeface, thus bridging the gap between western and eastern cultures and ushering Manga into a new era.

JB Perrette, President and CEO Discovery International, said: “Eurosport broadcasts 70% of the Summer Olympic sport disciplines so our line-up of world-class experts are uniquely placed to tell the stories that really matter, delivering unrivalled sports expertise. Our award-winning Eurosport cube was a huge hit and we will amplify this experience using the latest technologies for Tokyo 2020 to immerse fans in the action like never before.”

George Aivazoglou, Vice President of Marketing at Eurosport, added: “We wanted our Tokyo 2020 brand identity to create a unique symbol that incorporates and respects Japanese culture and the iconic Eurosport logo, to become instantly recognisable and resonate with millions of people watching the Games across Europe.

“Over the next 18 months, fans will witness how this new creative vehicle will underpin Eurosport’s marketing campaign ahead of and during Tokyo 2020. With this design we believe we have created a visual identity that is versatile, conveys the dynamic side of the Games and engages younger generations – truly visionary.”

 

Hampshire Cricket Will Continue To Wear Adidas

Hampshire Cricket has extended its partnership with Adidas for the new season.

Adidas will continue to be the official kit supplier to the Hampshire first-team (wicket keeper Tom Alsop is in the photo above), providing playing wear for the club in all three domestic competitions in 2019, across the Specsavers County Championship, Royal London One-Day Cup and Vitality Blast.

Adidas will further provide the first-team squad’s training kit in 2019 from their new T19 range, with garments including tracksuits, training tops, shorts, polo-shirts, caps and jackets.

Hampshire Director of Cricket, Giles White said: “We’re pleased to have signed with Adidas again this year and the new kit looks fantastic – it’s great that our fans will have the opportunity to show their support with both training and playing wear available this season too.”

 

World Archery Target Partner Will Support New Online Series

World Archery has extended its partnership with target manufacturer Rinehart until 2020.

As part of the deal, Rinehart will be presenting sponsor of a new online video series due to launch in 2019 and will receive event exposure, logo access and asset use.

Rinehart has been a sponsor of World Archery since 2016.

World Archery Secretary General Tom Dielen said: “Rinehart targets will exclusively feature on the world’s largest archery stages thanks to the company’s work to build quality equipment that not only stops arrows effectively but also works hand-in-hand with our automatic electronic results systems. We’re thankful to have a partner so invested in developing the sport at the highest level.”

Rinehart Vice President Tanja Washburn said: “World Archery recognizes perfection at the highest level and we are truly honored that they chose to work with us on this project. Rinehart Targets is dedicated to to the continued development of archery at all levels and strive to ensure the quality World Archery, and all organisations, are looking for.”