Matthew Glendinning

The lead sponsorship negotiator for the venue ownership and operating group Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG) in Europe believes the French naming rights market is set to explode following this month’s sale of rights to the Paris Bercy indoor concert and sports arena.

The mobile phone sector spends a nine-figure euros sum per year on sports sponsorship with the majority of brands using the medium for brand awareness in national markets and only a handful stepping up to acquire long-term regional or global deals.

Japanese IT company Fujitsu is looking for global brand awareness from its sponsorship of the 2015 Rugby World Cup, but is unlikely to extend its sponsorship activity to a national deal in the UK.

German supermarket chain Lidl is transforming its image as a hard discount retailer in its key European markets and using sponsorship of national sport properties to help drive home the message in France and Italy.

German supermarket chain Lidl is using sponsorship of national sports properties in two major European markets to help reposition the brand from a hard discount distributor to a mass market brand.

The MP & Silva agency is thought to have gone a long way towards hitting its aggressive sponsorship commitment to the Football Association of Malaysia with its deal last month with national telecommunications company Telekom Malaysia.

Swedish car brand Volvo has taken an unusual route in acquiring th​e title rights to one of the most popular Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) Tour events in the US.

The Rugby Football Union (RFU) has negotiated a four-year extension to its Official England Kit Supplier deal with the rugby footwear and apparel specialists Canterbury.