Matthew Glendinning

Danish wind turbine company Vestas has taken on 100 per cent of the operational budget for the entry of Team Vestas Wind into the 2014-15 Volvo Ocean Race.

Stephen Urquhart, president of the luxury watch brand Omega, provided Sports Sponsorship Insider with a great marketing insight when he said that the only sponsorship that clearly moved sales of its watches was Omega’s James Bond deal.

Chemicals company Evonik Industries is using its sponsorship of Bundesliga club Borussia Dortmund to raise awareness of the business-to-business brand in Germany and, increasingly, internationally.

Sports sponsorships by the UK betting operator Ladbrokes are currently used as part of an integrated marketing approach rather than a standalone tool to acquire betting customers, a key marketing executive at Ladbrokes has said.

In June, Sports Sponsorship Insider provided intelligence and analysis on sponsorship deals and strategy from around the world, including special features on the UK’s America’s Cup challenger team Ben Ainslie Racing; Baku 2015, the European Olympic Committee's new multi-sports project, and the KPMG Women's PGA Championship, the revamped women’s golf major, to be run as a joint venture between the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) and the PGA of America.

Diageo-owned vodka brand Smirnoff has committed the lion’s share of its global sponsorship budget for this year to a one-year major partner deal with the Force India F1 team. The deal was announced on May 1, ahead of the Spanish Grand Prix, the fifth race of the Formula One season.

The General Motors-owned car brand Chevrolet is growing its presence in Brazilian football in order to connect with customers and increase its share of the Brazilian market, where the brand competes with Fiat and Volkswagen in the top three for sales of small cars.