Europe

London’s Wembley Stadium has ended its search for a lead partner with telecommunications company EE signing a six-year deal to take on the rights.

Activation has become a sponsorship necessity.

Many brands match their rights fee when allocating budget for activation and, with the importance of activation rising as the number of channels in which to work increase, where that money is best spent is often an issue for debate.

Headwear, apparel and accessories manufacturer Ahead has reached an agreement to become the primary headwear provider to golf’s Open Championship for three years, beginning with the 2014 edition of the tournament.

English Premier League football club Manchester City has entered into a three-year partnership with camera brand iON.

Formula One motor racing team Williams has announced a new partnership with Brazilian financial institution Banco do Brasil for the 2014 season.

Global payment brand MasterCard is in renewal talks for the final Worldwide Partner position at next year’s Rugby World Cup in England, as organisers seek to renew all six top-tier sponsors from the 2…

Barclays bank will end its title sponsorship of the English Premier League when its current £40m (€49m/$67m)-per-year contract concludes at the end of the 2015-16 season, Sports Sponsorship Insider un…

Beer brand Budweiser’s decision not to renew its lead partner contract with English football’s FA Cup has highlighted some weaknesses in the competition’s value to sponsors, industry experts said this month.

Sporting goods brand Puma’s five-year kit sponsorship deal with English Premier League club Arsenal is part of a strategy focused on fewer, but bigger, “killer” deals to make it the number three brand in the football market, Christian Voigt, Puma’s senior head of global sports marketing has told Sports Sponsorship Insider.

Italian swimwear company Arena outbid rival Speedo to sign its Official Partner deal with Fina, the world governing body for swimming, last month

Sports nutrition brand PowerBar has extended its partnership with cycling race the Tour de France through 2018.

Soft drinks brand Coca-Cola, razor brand Gillette, financial services company Citigroup and electronics company Sony have shown interest in the McLaren Mercedes F1 Team title sponsorship, but the team may wait until the entry of its new engine partner Honda in 2015 before signing a deal.

Car manufacturer Opel has extended its partnership with German Bundesliga football club Bayer 04 Leverkusen through 2016.

The shortlist of the UK Sponsorship Awards 2014 – of which SportBusiness Group, the publisher of Sports Sponsorship Insider, is a partner – has been unveiled ahead of the ceremony in London on March 26.

German sportswear and equipment company Adidas has expanded its partnership with Uefa to become the official match ball supplier for international qualifying matches played under the jurisdiction of European football’s governing body until 2017.

US sportswear firm Nike has been announced as the official performance wear partner of the Boat Race for the 2014 edition of the historic UK rowing event.